From recent evidence, it appears that the pandemic has taken more of a hit on some subjects versus others. Inevitably, Maths has been the main loser in this period. According to the Wall Street Journal “It would take students in grades five and six at least 12 weeks on average to catch up to where they were expected to be in the fall in math, compared with pre-pandemic skills”. While widely predicted, this result (US-based) does give us some facts to back up our hunches in this period of assessment and reflection. We continue to struggle, in many parts of the world, with an education system that is still unable to receive children physically at school. These results are lIkely to be representative on a global basis, but hope should not be lost. John Ewing, the president of Math for America, an NGO focused on advancing the subject for all, commented that “most students are resilient and bounce back…so the real priority should be helping disadvantaged children who lack technology and support to join online classes”. The point then is, while lamenting this situation, we should push our governments to fill the technology gap that can help them pick up this loss and be better prepared for any future disruptions.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/student-test-scores-drop-in-math-since-covid-19-pandemic-11605974400