COVID-19, digital divide harm academic progress in rural Colorado
The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe in rural Southwest Colorado is keeping elementary school students on the reservation instead of busing them to the Montezuma-Cortez School District to help limit spread of COVID-19 within the community.
But many families in Southwest Colorado, including those in Towaoc, struggle to access the internet. Broadband infrastructure is lacking in this corner of the state, and as late as October, at least some students in all grade levels had not yet logged into Colorado Digital Learning Solutions, the online learning platform and curriculum school districts adopted when students were forced to go online in the spring.
It is already becoming clear that school closures during the coronavirus pandemic are hurting students’ academic progress. To help mitigate the effects, Tina King-Washington, director of education for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, has partnered with Fort Lewis College’s Teacher Education Department to bring college students to Towaoc to tutor tribal students and help them access the online learning platform.
Read the complete article on the Durango Herald: https://www.durangoherald.com/articles/in-a-win-win-student-teachers-tutor-ute-mountain-ute-children/