Mitigating Learning Loss from COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed society in profound and unanticipated ways, and in the process exacerbated underlying social and economic inequalities. Pandemic-related school closures represent the largest disruption to education in history, with far-ranging impacts on K-12 learning. This generation of students now risks losing $17 trillion in lifetime earnings in present value, or about 14 percent of today’s global GDP according to a report published by the World Bank, UNESCO, and UNICEF.

Data on learning loss during the pandemic have been slow to emerge. Unlike economic sectors or the healthcare system, school systems typically do not post data at high-frequency intervals. Schools and teachers have struggled to adopt online-based solutions for instruction, let alone for assessment and accountability. Data evidences a drop in coursework completed, increased dispersion of test scores and overall less time studying.

This crisis extends beyond the traditional classroom and has significant impacts on the health and well-being of students, teachers and parents. It has widened pre existing opportunity and achievement gaps, hitting historically disadvantaged students hardest. High schoolers are now more likely to drop out of school, and high school seniors, especially those from low-income families, are less likely to go on to postsecondary education.

Concurrent economic effects have made parents less able to provide support, as they too struggle with economic uncertainty or poor working environments. The health and mortality risk of the pandemic incurs deeper psychological costs, as does the toll of social isolation. The fallout from the pandemic threatens to weaken prospects and limit opportunities well into adulthood. In Covid 19 and education: The Lingering Effects of Unfinished Learning, McKinsey group forecasts that today’s students may earn $49,000 to $61,000 less over their lifetime owing to the impact of the pandemic on their schooling. The impact on the US economy could amount to $128 billion to $188 billion every year as this cohort enters the workforce.

Federal funds are in place to help states and districts respond, however, funding has its limitations. The systemic and pervasive challenges in our school systems predate the pandemic and previously resisted reform. More than ever, states and districts will have an integral role implementing and organizing funding into sustainable programs that bolster student outcomes. It is clear that there is an immediate need to reimagine our education systems, anticipate future challenges, and maintain higher frequency data in the educational sector. Across all of these priorities it will be critical to take a holistic approach that accounts for the academic and nonacademic needs of students, teachers, and parents.