Betthäuser, BA; Bach-Mortensen, AM; Engzell, P; (2023) A systematic review and meta-analysis of the evidence on learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nature Human Behaviour , 7 pp. 275-285. 10.1038/s41562-022-01506-4.

Preview

Text A_systematic_review_and_meta_analysis_of_the_evidence_on_learning_during_the_COVID_19_pandemic.pdf - Accepted Version Download (639kB) | Preview

Abstract

To what extent has the learning progress of school-aged children slowed down during the COVID-19 pandemic? A growing number of studies address this question, but findings vary depending on context. Here we conduct a pre-registered systematic review, quality appraisal and meta-analysis of 42 studies across 15 countries to assess the magnitude of learning deficits during the pandemic. We find a substantial overall learning deficit (Cohen’s d = −0.14, 95% confidence interval −0.17 to −0.10), which arose early in the pandemic and persists over time. Learning deficits are particularly large among children from low socio-economic backgrounds. They are also larger in maths than in reading and in middle-income countries relative to high-income countries. There is a lack of evidence on learning progress during the pandemic in low-income countries. Future research should address this evidence gap and avoid the common risks of bias that we identify.

Download activity - last month

Export as XMLCSVJSON

Download activity - last 12 months

Export as JSONCSVXML

Downloads by country - last 12 months

Export as CSVXMLJSON

Archive Staff Only

View Item