DISTANCE LEARNING DURING COVID-19: DIFFERENCES IN ENVIRONMENTAL DYNAMICS BETWEEN RURAL AND MAJOR SUBURBAN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

COVID-19 forced schools to look at education differently within a matter of days. Some schools were prepared, and education flowed continuously, while others were left scrambling. Numerous initiatives have encouraged distance learning during the quarantine period to help students continue in their education. Utilizing a mixed-methods design, this study looks at elementary schools located in two different types of school districts (major suburban and rural), and the environmental dynamics that affected distance learning during COVID-19 school closures. Teachers from both types of schools were asked to complete a survey with 24 Likert-like items, and four open response items. The analysis indicated that major suburban schools rated community and home environmental factors higher than the rural schools, showing that they considered community and home factors to be less of a negative impact than their rural counterparts. However, when considering the schools’ environmental dynamics, there was only a four-point difference between the major suburban and rural schools’ ratings. When the open-ended items were evaluated, three central themes emerged; (a) technology availability and dependability; (b) parental support availability and capability; and finally, (c) teacher training and support.