Evidence-Based and Promising Practices to Support Continuity of Learning for Students With Disabilities - Practices and Resources to Support Parents and Families

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Angel

Evidence-based and promising practices focus on supporting students with disabilities during school building closures and extended virtual or distance instruction. The brief outlines why family involvement matters, explains evidence-based and promising practice categories, and groups supports into broad home learning foundations plus specific strategies for literacy and math. It includes guidance for families on establishing routines and expectations, addressing behavioral and social-emotional needs, and applying research-supported actions through structured examples and tables.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages20

Reading Time50 min

AccessFree to download

Overview

Need for Evidence-Based and Promising Practices

Practice Categories

Broad practices

Specific practices

Summary and Examples of Practices

Practices for School-Aged Children (Ages 5–18)

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TOPICAL ISSUE BRIEF | | | --- | --- | | | Evidence-Based and Promising Practices to Support Continuity of Learning for Students With Disabilities
Practices and Resources to Support Parents and Families | Overview Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, as of this writing, 21 states and three U.S. territories have ordered or recommended school building closures for the rest of the academic year, with closures impacting at least 124,000 U.S. public and private schools and affecting at least 55.1 million students. 1 In addition, districts in nearly all other states and territories have implemented extended closures with pending dates for reopening. This situation presents challenges for all families, particularly for families of students with disabilities who often must take on a significant role in supporting their children in virtual learning and distance instruction. This brief presents practices and resources that educators, early interventionists, and parent center staff can share with parents and families of students with disabilities to support students’continuity of learning during school building closures. Families always have a critical role in educating children and are their first and most important teachers. Family involvement in school is linked to positive academic and behavioral outcomes for children and youth.2 The current pandemic emphasizes the need for positive collaboration between families and schools. To support student learning during this time, families and schools will need to work together, communicate frequently, and provide students with a range of effective learning opportunities. Need for Evidence-Based and Promising Practices Evidence-based practices ( EBPs) in education refer to teaching and learning strategies that have been shown by scientific research to be effective in improving academic and/or behavioral performance. Using an EBP does not guarantee that it will be successful with every child but does indicate that the practice has a greater chance of working than those without evidence. Promising practices are those that have shown potential to have positive impact on outcomes for students with disabilities but have not been subject to rigorous testing to demonstrate that impact. Practice Categories This brief presents two categories of practices: (a) broad practices to set the foundation for distance and virtual learning at home and (b) specific practices for literacy and math development that families can use to support students’ academic skill development while they are home. Broad practices: A major task for families during this time is to establish a positive learning environment in the home. Families will need to focus on creating structures and routines, establishing expectations, and attending to the behavioral and social-emotional needs of students, so that students can effectively engage in online or distance learning that is provided by the school. Specific practices: The current circumstances emphasize the important role of families in helping children develop and maintain academic skills. Families can supplement the learning opportunities offered by the school to help students develop key academic skills. All families have different amounts of time and resources to devote to supporting students’ learning at home. The current pandemic presents unique challenges for families of students with disabilities because of the unique learning and behavioral needs of these students. As a result, families and educators must work together to determine the best course of action for their students. The practices presented in this brief may help families support their children’s learning during this challenging time. Summary and Examples of Practices The following tables describe research-supported practices for parents and families to support virtual instruction and skill development for children and students with disabilities. These tables present the name of each p

FAQs

What challenge does the brief address for families during COVID-19 closures?

It addresses how school building closures create learning and behavioral challenges that require families of students with disabilities to take on a major role in virtual learning support.

How does the brief define evidence-based practices and promising practices?

Evidence-based practices are strategies shown by scientific research to improve academic and/or behavioral performance, while promising practices show potential benefits for students with disabilities but have not always been tested with rigorous methods.

What are the two main categories of practices presented?

The brief presents broad home-based practices to establish distance/virtual learning foundations and specific practices for literacy and math development to support academic skill growth while students are at home.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Angel