A Look Inside Michigan Classrooms: Educators’ Perceptions of COVID-19 and K-12 Schooling in the Fall of 2020

April 2021

Educators have dealt with unprecedented challenges since school buildings closed in early spring 2020, at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. To better understand how Michigan educators are responding to this shifting environment at the beginning of the 2020-21 academic year, the Education Policy Innovation Collaborative (EPIC) conducted a survey of K-12 teachers, principals, and superintendents in traditional public schools (TPSs) and charter schools (in Michigan called public school academies, or PSAs) across the state.

This policy brief explores seven key findings that emerged from our analyses of educators’ responses to the fall 2020 COVID-19 survey.

KEY FINDINGS INCLUDE:

• Educators faced challenges providing remote instruction.
• Teachers wanted additional resources to improve remote instruction.
• Student engagement in instruction is both a challenge for educators and an equity concern.
• Educators expressed significant concerns about missed instruction and student well-being.
• The pandemic negatively affected the delivery of special education services.
• COVID-19 safety precautions and student well-being influenced educators’ willingness to return to in-person instruction.
• Many Michigan teachers and principals considered leaving the profession due to challenges presented by COVID-19.