State making pandemic learning program available for 2 more years | Education

An educational software program used by about 6,000 North Dakota students during the coronavirus pandemic will remain available at no cost for another two years, according to State Superintendent Kirsten Baesler.

Edmentum Exact Path offers personalized online instruction in math, reading and language arts to K-12 students. It adapts to each student’s needs and documents learning progress.

The state Department of Public Instruction last August announced it was using $1.2 million in federal coronavirus relief aid to make the program available to all public, private, tribal and homeschool students until September 2021. If a student uses Exact Path regularly through September, he or she will be eligible to continue using it at no cost for two more school years, until September 2023, according to the department.

The cost of the new contract is being negotiated. It will be paid for with federal pandemic recovery money.

“North Dakota students and families who have benefited from Exact Path should have the opportunity to continue using it at no cost,” Baesler said. “Our students, families, and educators have all worked incredibly hard to overcome the learning disruptions caused by the pandemic.”