Overview

March 22

COVID school closures had a devastating impact on America’s schoolchildren. For the first time since the National Assessment of Educational Progress began tracking student achievement in the 1970s, 9-year-olds lost ground in math, and scores in reading fell by the largest margin in more than 30 years.

As the New York Times put it, "the pandemic erased two decades of progress in math and reading."

The disruptions impacted communities unevenly, causing high-poverty districts, low-performing students and Black and Hispanic students to fall even further behind. And the setbacks aren’t just related to the pandemic. According to education experts, a decade or more of inequality in education investment is also to blame.

Technology will play a vital role in closing the learning gap. Join the Center for Digital Education on March 22, 2023, at 10 a.m. Pacific Time/1 p.m. Eastern Time to explore the emerging classroom technologies that educators can use to help address learning loss, including:

Artificial intelligence and data analytics that can help identify students most at risk from falling behind
E-learning platforms that deliver a personalized education plan for every student
Hybrid solutions that provide better access to labs and other learning tools

Speakers

Ashley Cowger

Executive Director of Strategy & Integration at Indianapolis Public Schools

Ashley Cowger serves as the Executive Director of Strategy & Integration at Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS). She leads a variety of strategic organizational initiatives along with leading Digital Strategy for Indianapolis Public Schools (IPS) which includes the functional work of IT, Business Intelligence, Digital Instruction, Digital Transformation, and Professional Learning to ensure infrastructure, people, and resources are laser-focused on supporting high-quality teaching & learning and organizational business in IPS. Prior to her service as a district leader in IPS, Ashley served as Chief of Staff for the Indiana State Board of Education, lead school and district turnaround strategy for large urban school districts around the country while working for TNTP, and served as a self-contained special education teacher for students with emotional, behavioral, and conduct disabilities in Indianapolis Public Schools.

Eric Hibbs

Superintendent for Marlboro NJ Public Schools

Eric Hibbs is the Superintendent for Marlboro NJ Public Schools. Dr. Hibbs began his tenure as Superintendent of Marlboro Township Public Schools (MTPS) in August of 2013. As the superintendent, Dr. Hibbs oversees all school-related matters including curriculum, personnel, professional development, facilities planning, and budget development. In his time in Marlboro, Dr. Hibbs has transitioned the district to full-day kindergarten and generated millions of dollars in facility improvements and upgrades through the district’s ESIP program. Marlboro is consistently recognized by the State of New Jersey as a high performing district as per the state’s monitoring system.

Tom Ryan — Moderator

Senior Fellow, Center for Digital Education

Tom Ryan has recently retired from Santa Fe Public Schools, in New Mexico, as Chief Information and Strategy Officer. He has co-founded, K12 Strategic Technology Advisory Group, to assist district leaders deliver educational success with technology, which is led by experienced school technology leaders. He has expertise in strategic planning and leadership, designing digital learning environments, technology infrastructure reviews. Dr. Ryan has a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction. He has served as CIO in large and very large public-school districts and has 40+ years of experience and expertise in teaching, leadership, technology integration and blended/online learning program development. He is past chair in CoSN and works with the Council of the Great City Schools (CGCS) performing large school district reviews and helps coordinate annual CIO conferences. Dr. Ryan is a Senior Fellow for the Center of Digital Education and presents at several international and national conferences throughout the year.

Webinar

Closing the Pandemic Learning Gap: Emerging Technology in K-12