Impact of COVID-19 School Closures on Student Learning

As per eminent experts and prolific economics assignment helpLinks to an external site.stalwarts, prolonged school closures associated with the coronavirus pandemic are likely to have a major negative effect on children’s education. It would leave some students academically behind for years to come, and even leading to the mean loss of income of many families. 

In the weeks since public, as well as private schools across the country, remains closed to spread the deathly COVID-19, one question that has repeatedly been asked to the educators: How would this affect the career of the children? 

In short, no one knows for sure. 

In this article, we have highlighted certain unique ways researchers have found the effect of school shutdown affecting the education of children-

• 1. Some researchers believe summer vacation impedes learning 

Talk of the top economics assignment help forums since the closing of schools has been how missing school whether voluntary or involuntary, has negative consequences for student learning. 

There is a long-standing line of research in the education sector about “summer learning loss”. According to such theory, kids appear to regress academically during the annual summer vacation. These seem like the best model we can take into account what happens when schools shut down for months at a time.

Literature especially focusses on the fact that while kids from low-income families would start behind academically, the gap is likely to increase in summer. However, some argue that children do not learn much for the entire summer, and this is true for both poor and non-poor kids. 

Thus, the vacation offers an opportunity to close the achievement gap by providing poor kids bonus school time over the summer. 

• 2. Impact of school closures vary as per children’s socioeconomic backgrounds and geographic location 

As per the researchers, children of lower-income families and the rural areas aren’t as likely to have the internet as the children of middle-class families. Some of them even do not have the fast broadband internet required to stream online classes and instructional videos. As such, they are more likely to suffer more due to the shutdowns of the schools. 

On the other hand, it has been observed that children from higher-income households are more likely to have private tutors. They also have a stay-at-home parent who can dedicate more time to oversee the academic growth of their children during school shutdowns. 

• 3. Other Crucial factors That Are Likely To Influence Academic Achievement 

A lack of access to classrooms and formalised instructions aren’t the only factors affecting the learning of the students right now. Researchers point out, children whose family are in various stress like losing jobs, low income, the ongoing shortage of certain foods or supplies along with the anxiety of Covid-19 are most likely to be impacted. 

Apart from that, a child who is forced to spend all day, every day in an abusive household, safety is a concern for him rather than education. 

This is nothing but bad news for us. If you look at all the factors mentioned above, you will notice that apart from the hindering of academic achievement, there is also inequality amidst the children which would only grow.

 For now, we must, of course, defeat our immediate enemy, which is the COVID-19. But, it’s never too early to start thinking about the day after we declare victory, whenever that might be. 

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