For students with disabilities, the pandemic has been a landscape of extremes. Some have thrived with distance learning and want to continue in the fall, while many have languished without the in-person support of therapists and teachers and have lost ground academically, socially and emotionally.
But staffing shortages, a lack of data and a backlog of evaluations mean it could be months before schools get a clear picture of students’ needs.
“Students with disabilities are not a monolith. Each student is an individual. And right now, we don’t know exactly what the impact has been,” said Meghan Whittaker, policy director for the National Center for Learning Disabilities. “We need data, assessments, guidance and accountability.”