American Institutes for Research

The foster care community is facing some unique challenges during the coronavirus pandemic. In the latest podcast episode, AIR early childhood expert and licensed foster mom Ann-Marie Faria discusses how COVID-19 has affected the foster care system and ways to address some of the challenges it faces.

In the latest episode of AIR Informs, Irma Perez-Johnson explains why the U.S. Department of Labor’s unemployment statistics may not capture the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the workforce; why an accurate count matters; and what the road to economic recovery may look like.

Remote learning requires adjustment for all students, but students with disabilities face additional challenges during the COVID-19 quarantine. In the latest episode of AIR Informs, Allison Gandhi, managing researcher and director of AIR’s special education practice area, describes some of these obstacles and shares strategies to help students make the most of this time.

The coronavirus pandemic is affecting everyone, but people with disabilities will likely feel the effects more than people without. AIR economist Michelle Yin discusses factors that make this population especially vulnerable—and explains how the pandemic has the potential to shift all workplaces to be more inclusive and flexible.

What is a Community of Practice? A community of practice is a group of people who share a common concern or passion for something they do, and they learn how to do it better as they regularly interact. Group members can connect in person, online, or a combination of both. Even though the coronavirus pandemic has pushed interaction, learning, and professional development to online environments, that doesn’t mean these activities can’t be just as effective as they would be in person. In this episode of AIR Informs, Melissa Rasberry and Marshal Conley discuss communities of practice and how they can help teachers connect.