COVID-19 Pandemic in the Houston Region - Education and Schooling: Findings from the Gulf Coast Coronavirus (COVID-19) Community Impact Survey

The coronavirus pandemic fundamentally altered education and schooling in the Houston area. To better understand the impact of COVID-19 on Houston area families and communities, the Houston Education Research Consortium collaborated with Connective (previously, Harvey Home Connect) to launch the Gulf Coast Coronavirus (COVID-19) Community Impact Survey. This report focuses on changes and experiences with education and schooling between March and September 2020. In these first few months of the pandemic, schools and districts were forced to shift to 100% remote instruction. This decision meant students needed access to the internet and a digital device suitable for engaging with online learning. Many students, particularly Black and Hispanic students, as well as students from families earning less than $35,000 per year, did not have access to these technology resources. Parents also worried their children would not be academically prepared for the 2020-21 school year. Yet, despite the shifting unknowns for schools at the start of the pandemic, school district leaders were consistently and continuously in communication with their students' families. The report concludes with recommendations related to digital equity, ongoing communication efforts and additional areas of study around the pandemic.