A report released Thursday by a western New York-based education group questioned whether school districts are fully prepared to provide remote learning as the academic year begins again in the coming weeks. 

The analysis by the Education Trust-New York reviewed reopening plans for 50 school districts in the state, finding that some of the plans failed to respond to the concerns parents have raised after schools closed in March and April due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

Those issues include more live daily instruction and interaction with teachers, not fulfilling the requirements or recommendations made by the state's framework for reopening or ensuring support for students. 

“This crisis has already worsened the pre-existing inequities in public education, and unless we get remote and blended learning right this fall, the opportunity gaps in our education system will continue to widen, with lifelong consequences for children,” said Ian Rosenblum, the executive director of The Education Trust–New York.

“We need to know what our education system is going to do differently this fall to ensure that the same students who have been underserved before the pandemic – and who had unfinished instruction in the spring when schools closed – will experience quality remote instruction when the new school year begins.”

Reopening has presented myriad challenges for schools districts large and small. Some of the biggest school districts in the state, including Buffalo and Rochester, are beginning their school year remotely. 

And reopening is considered a costly endeavor for districts, many of which are also choosing a mixed model of online learning and in-classroom instruction in order to maintain social distancing. 

The full report can be found here.