From rapid emergency response to scaling and sustaining innovation: Adult foundational education in the time of COVID‐19

Abstract This article describes programmatic and instructional responses to the shutdown and the changing needs of learners that were triggered by the spread of COVID‐19. It reports on the findings of a group of researchers who interviewed a convenience sample of state adult education staff, program managers, instructional leaders and supervisors, and instructors soon after the shutdown began and again about 15 months later. They indicate that responding to the initial emergency has been an impetus for meaningful innovation and a broader array of instructional and support options for learners, but challenges and questions remain about how to sustain it.