Facts Regarding COVID-19 and Education in the US
COVID-19 in 2019-2020 forced at least 24.2 million US children out of school (and 1.7 billion children world-wide) which is likely to result in each child’s permanent learning loss, loss of income, and poor health in adult life if solutions designed for each child are not put into action right now. (Estimation of US Children’s Educational Attainment and Years of Life Lost Associated With Primary School Closures During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic, Modeling the Long-Run Learning Impact of the COVID-19 Learning Shock: Actions to (More Than) Mitigate Loss).
Children (especially those in lower-income families) are likely to lose more than a full year’s worth of learning from even a three-month school closure (How much learning may be lost in the long-run from COVID-19 and how can mitigation strategies help?).
A child’s learning level can be improved despite school closures, if parents and others (including teachers) link the help they offer children to each child’s learning level and interests. (This is called “Teaching at the Right Level.” (Teaching At The Right Level))
If immediate, child-specific action is not taken today, then this generation of children may lose $10 trillion in earnings over their lifetime due learning gaps caused by COVID-19. (The COVID-19 Cost of School Closures)