A new study by the Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) reveals that U.S. students have not yet reached pre-COVID levels of learning in math and reading. The study, released on Tuesday, shows that the pandemic has disproportionately impacted Black and Hispanic students.
The study examined data from over 5 million students in grades 3-8 who took the NWEA MAP Growth assessment in fall 2022. On average, students are still 1.5 months behind their expected progress if the pandemic had not occurred. However, the gap is even larger for Black and Hispanic students, who are 2.5 and 2 months behind, respectively.
According to the study’s authors, these findings emphasize the ongoing negative effects of the pandemic on education. Additionally, the achievement gap between Black and Hispanic students and their white peers has widened during this time.
The study’s results arrive during a period when many schools are still struggling to recover from the disruptions caused by the pandemic. The COVID-19 outbreak forced numerous schools to close or transition to remote learning, resulting in a loss of instructional time and decreased student achievement.
The NWEA study underscores the lingering impact of the pandemic on education. The authors state that significant efforts will be required to help students catch up to where they would have been without the pandemic. They also advocate for increased funding for schools and additional support for teachers.
These findings serve as a reminder of the crucial importance of education and highlight the necessity of taking measures to ensure that every student has equal opportunities to succeed.
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