Four State-Level Policies To Support Learning Pods

Opportunity

Recently, the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) released two reports on learning pods. One study surveys families and teachers, and one study looks at the demand for pods. So many commentators have already written about these studies. See some examples of reporting and commentary at EdWeek, the74, Forbes, Permissionless Education and Twitter.

Here’s the bottom line: Most students, parents and teachers loved the flexibility, autonomy and deeper relationships that accompanied learning pods. Yet most parents in the CRPE study returned to traditional schools. Why? One potential reason relates to a lack of policy infrastructure that would have supported parents to continue their efforts. These reports clearly indicate a need for state-level policies that fully support the accessibility and sustainability of the much-loved option.

To that end, ExcelinEd believes at least four policies would change the game for parents and teachers.

Education Scholarship Accounts (ESAs)

An ESA would allow parents to direct the state’s portion of their child’s overall per-pupil allocation to the education provider of their choice. This is not a zero-sum decision. For example, West Virginia’s expansive program allows parents to direct funds to therapies and tutors in addition to tuition at a school of their choosing. You can find a short brief on West Virginia’s policy here.

Parent-Teacher Compacts

A parent-teacher compact allows a parent to hire a teacher who is then paid with public funds. The relationship between the parent and the teacher is governed by a written agreement, or compact. Indiana is currently moving a bill regarding compacts through its legislature. If such a policy were to pass in Indiana, a teacher would only need to work with about seven students in order to match the average teacher salary in the state. In Wyoming, a teacher would need to serve only five students. And in Hawaii, it’s only four students. That is according to an ExcelinEd policy brief that you can find here.

Part-Time Enrollment

A part-time enrollment policy allows homeschool and private school students to enroll in public school for one or more courses. Last June, ExcelinEd published a 12-state analysis of part-time enrollment policies. As we have previously written, this policy offers a win for public schools and a win for families. Public schools gain more students, and families gain more flexibility.  

Parent-Directed Education Spending

Parent-directed education spending (PDES) allows parents of public-school students to direct a portion of education funding to the service provider of their choice. While ESAs are typically administered at the state-level, PDES is typically driven by local public schools on behalf of public-school students. Marguerite Roza wrote about this several weeks ago. According to Roza, Portland, Philadelphia, Camden and Chicago have all pursued such an idea. Look here to find a one-pager on the idea from September 2021.

If these four policies were adopted in states, parents would be able to afford things like tutors, education technology and deep learning experiences. Teachers would gain more autonomy and more flexibility and would likely develop deeper relationships with students in smaller groups. And policymakers could be the champions of builders and weavers, the proactive community members who are creating new and meaningful opportunities for students.

For examples of what these pods or small-group learning environments can look like, check out the blog from January where we feature 10 firsthand accounts from ‘builders’ who developed small learning communities during the pandemic.

Solution Areas:

Private Education Choice, Public Education Choice

Topics:

Education Scholarship Accounts, Part-Time Enrollment

About the Author

Sam Duell is the Policy Director for Charter Schools at ExcelinEd.

Solution Areas:

Private Education Choice, Public Education Choice