COVID-19 school disruptions still impacting students today, learning loss report finds

Detailed summary

A new report says Canadian students are still feeling the impact of the COVID pandemic's massive upset to their schooling, with declining achievement — particularly in math — and a discrepancy between standardized test scores and the grades kids receive in class.

Canadian students are still recovering from the pandemic's massive upset to their schooling, with evidence of declining achievement — particularly in math — across jurisdictions, according to a new report.

The report, released Thursday by the Royal Society of Canada, the Canadian Commission for UNESCO and the University of Ottawa, also notes a discrepancy between standardized test scores and the grades kids receive in class

It takes an in-depth look at pandemic learning loss and recovery by examining students' academic results in language arts and mathematics before, during and after COVID-19. Nearly three dozen researchers parsed data from Canadian ministries of education, save Manitoba and Nunavut, which didn't participate.

They analyzed the results of standardized tests, as well as teacher-assigned grades across different grades and — depending on the jurisdiction — considered factors like gender and location (for instance, rural and remote communities versus urban ones).

The pandemic is "going to influence learning for the next few decades and that's not exaggeration," said Tracy Vaillancourt, chair of the report and a professor of education at the University of Ottawa.

Findings differed across regions, student populations and grades — not surprising given the varying local contexts across jurisdictions, including how each assesses learning and the patchwork of pandemic approaches taken by each province or territory. (Evan Mitsui/CBC)

The report is divided by studies of individual provinces and territories, with the findings differing across regions, student populations and grades, said Vaillancourt, who's also the Canada Research Chair in youth mental health and violence prevention.

That's not surprising given the varying local contexts of each jurisdiction, including how each assesses learning, coupled with the patchwork of pandemic responses taken: from how long each closed schools and opted for remote learning to physical distancing in classrooms to recovery…

Yet…

Opening of the article, excerpted from CBC News. To read the rest, open the article on the publisher's site.