Educators are noticeably more comfortable giving students autonomy over their learning–and this is just one of the long-term impacts the pandemic has had on K-12 education, according to insight from the nonprofit Project Tomorrow.

In its annual Congressional Briefing, the nonprofit presented this year’s Speak Up Research Project findings. This year’s results indicate patterns across digital learning for students and teachers coinciding with the effects that the pandemic had on learning.

The Speak Up Research Project is a national research initiative and free service to schools and districts. Since the Fall of 2003, Speak Up has helped education leaders include the voices of their stakeholders in annual and long-term planning. ed.Web.net hosted the briefing, which featured keynote speaker Kristina Ishmael, Deputy Director of the Office of Ed Tech at the U.S. Department of Education.

“This moment in time presents a unique opportunity for the future of education,” said Dr. Julie A. Evans, Chief Researcher and CEO of Project Tomorrow. “Students and teachers are evolving the education system we previously knew; our students are realizing the benefits of technology and teachers are evaluating this technology with new attitudes and infused styles of teaching to create new bridges and motivate students for self-directed learning to foster a more engaging experience overall.”

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