The term learning loss assumes that learning is linear, that youth can be in a state of non-learning, and that our current measurements of student learning are effective. It also assumes that there are times that we are losing what we have learned. While I do think that we get rusty with things that we do not practice, as I have experienced this myself, I am not sure the term “loss” captures the essence of this phenomenon; while my swimming is rusty, I am not going to drown in a pool once I have learned to swim; while my Spanish is rusty since I have not been regularly using it, I can still find my way through a conversation, and with some practice and social connection I will grow right back into my previous capacities, my neural networks will wrap some more myelin. We (and definitely youth) are learning all of the time, every day, every moment. Youth may not be learning what “we” want them to learn, but they are learning - there is no such thing as a non-learner, or non-learning (with rare exceptions in the case of acute physical damage or neglect).
The concept of "learning loss", akin to the achievement gap, is based on the use of standardized testing, and represents a colossal failure in our school system - but not a failure of our students to learn or be open to learning. If for decades we continue to see the same results from standardized testing why does the system continue to employ the same testing methods and ask why we don’t see change?
A focus on relationships, caring, and community building are the key elements to creating educational spaces where students will engage in deep learning because they know they belong and have agency. It is in these holistic structure where we focus on the overall health and well-being of youth in order that they be open to taking the risks and sharing of themselves fully, stances necessary for students to effectively build their academic, intellectual, and social-emotional capacity. These interrelational and interconnected factors are the primary necessities of a school community, especially after and during a worldwide pandemic during which our communities have experienced trauma, loss, and disruption. Coming back to school and focusing only on the “rigorous” implementation of academic instruction, essentially eliminating time students have to create community and connection, will only lead to more loss, trauma, and disruption to both academic learning and overall wellbeing.
Dorn et al’s concerns about the disparity in opportunities for students of color and other marginalized populations are not unfounded. However, their argument is based on standardized assessments and the concept that grade level buckets of knowledge are to be deposited into each students’ brain at each stop along the linear factory model of banking education. Learning is so much more complicated than this and requires holistic collaborative formative forms of assessment, not standardized one-size fits all students, from every community, testing. Of course it is imperative that youth access and develop academic rigor and capacity, in numeracy and literacy, and in art, science, dance, movement, cooking, crafting, music, athletics, critical thinking, acting, medicine, social-emotional dynamics, and so much more; this holistic community responsive and personalized education will not be accomplished in equitable ways if all we keep looking at are the results of standardized tests as our measure of success.
The building of community, of relationships and student agency, is the way forward to building students’ academic capacity. While access to the resources necessary to learn (such as internet, devices, and in person instruction) are very necessary, the gap in access for excluded and underserved communities has been in existence for decades (centuries). The world-wide COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare these disparities, inequalities, and inequities in access to quality education. What we do now with this information should not be to turn back to the decades old models of oppressive capitalist driven schooling methods that have consistently, systematically, and historically created these very disparities. It is time that we see this biological disruption as the beginning of a prolonged social, economic, and political disruption of the status quo. This requires economic and political will, a will that, sadly, I am not confident the dominant social order will permit to persist and take root. But that for dammed sure doesn't mean I'm giving up.
As Dr. Betina Love so poignantly and powerfully states - the pandemic showed us that school systems, despite the decades long lack of political will (and supposed economic capacity) to respond to the calls of transformation, stop on a dime, move quickly, and provide some of the resources and changes that seemed "impossible" prior to the pandemic - stopped using standardized tests, gave one-to-one devices for all children/families, relied on trusting teachers' pedagogy, expertise and ingenuity - treated almost like professionals (no?), relied on trusting parents as integral partners in education, provided flexible schedules and hybrid models, tech companies gave out free internet, "compassion over compliance". . . So we know these changes are not only possible, they are realistic and doable. So how do we keep this same energy and spirit going? That is the only question in my heart and mind.
What was normal pre-pandemic was not healthy for our communities - as Dr. Love compels us to fight for - we need to maintain and reinvigorate the trust in teachers, parents, and students that was readily given during the beginning stages of the pandemic - the flexibility around due dates, grading, and standardized testing and curriculum - the abolishment of punitive compliance driven policies - let that shit rest - it's done - at least it should be and we know it has been done before and can be done again.
