And what it means for our school districts.
In short, the American Rescue Plan, due for 2024, will be “the most money education leaders have seen in their entire career,” – EdWeek, U.S. Education Secretary Cardona – with $130 billion dollars total being distributed across the 50 states.
This was created to combat the teacher shortage experienced by most districts in the US today. Now the question that lies is, with the most funds ever being driven to education in history, how can we ensure they are best being used to serve our students and educators?
Here’s everything you need to know about the 2024 American Rescue Plan.
The U.S. Is Playing Catch-Up with Other Countries
In general, 10% of school funding comes from the federal government, the remaining 90% relies on state and local funding. The American Rescue Plan was largely motivated to be put in place by the president to keep up with other countries in educational development.
According to EdWeek, “thirty countries now outperform the United States in mathematics at the high school level”, emphasizing the growing disparity between economic vs. educational emphasis in the United States.
This isn’t the fault of educators or general school administrators. The US used to be a global leader, encouraging pursuit of education as part of the American dream. But there’s been little development in the past 40 years as other countries continue to develop their education systems.
Education is one of the fastest developing industries going hand-in-hand with technology, growing “2.1% per year on average between 2017 and 2022.” To keep pace with global developments, the US and its schools have begun to realize it needs to invest in tutoring resource programs and data driven learning like other leading countries.
An Emphasis on Mental Health In-School Resources
Another important gap the Rescue Plan will address is providing mental and emotional support for student achievement. Already “seventy percent of schools … said more students had sought mental health services since the pandemic started,” addressing that there is a growing need for more in-school resources. We’ve seen schools adding mental health days off for struggling students, and 41% reported hiring new staff for mental support. Especially in K-12 education, at such a young and moldable age, it is important to show students their schools are points of support and community that have the resources to build them up for success.
Allocating Funds to Supplemental Tutoring Programs
Just as the pandemic created a rise in mental health deficits among students, it also introduced proven benefits from online tutoring. A district in Newark, New Jersey found that “only 11% of students were meeting grade-level state expectations in reading, and only 9% in math.” This is due to the influx of students falling behind when sent home in during the pandemic.
Many students today are still adjusting back to all the varying levels of student education resulting from years of working at different paces at home. We hope to see widespread allocation of rescue plan funds for tutors and mentors as “family school liaisons [will] help connect those families that, due to the pandemic, have not been engaged as much.”
The pandemic and economic factors have almost hit a global reset button as to how we look at the world today. In terms of educational development, the United States has a long way to go to be the leader it once was. Luckily legislation is beginning to recognize these gaps and provide support like the American Rescue Plan to help. Districts can take initiatives by wisely investing funding into educational support systems from data and tech development to mental health support and tutoring partners like Intervene K-12.
The Intervene K-12 Difference
At Intervene K-12 we provide Tier 2 support that is differentiated, data-driven, and allows for students to grow academically in real time with a tutors in small groups. Purposeful discussion allows students to share their understandings with peers in a safe, positive environment.
See more at intervenek12.com/online-tutoring/