Publication:
Learning Loss as a Result of COVID-19: Evidence from a Longitudinal Survey in Malawi

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dc.contributor.authorAsim, Salman
dc.contributor.authorBashir, Sajitha
dc.contributor.authorGera, Ravinder Casley
dc.date.accessioned2024-07-16T17:18:07Z
dc.date.available2024-07-16T17:18:07Z
dc.date.issued2024-07-16
dc.description.abstractSchool closures from COVID-19 have resulted in large learning losses, from 0.05 to 0.17 standard deviations in high income countries, equivalent to two to six months of lost learning. However, the extent of primary-level learning loss in low-income countries remains unclear, studies lack information on individual students’ learning trajectories, and most do not include students who dropped out. This paper uses representative survey data from Malawi that includes unique longitudinal data on individual students (grade 4 at baseline), including those who dropped out, at three points in time: pre-COVID; 1–12 months before the seven-month school closures; and 14–20 months after schools reopened. Across math, English, and Chichewa, the local language, the average learning loss amounts to 18 months (78 points, 0.78 standard deviations), significantly higher than the loss documented in high income contexts. Decomposing this loss, the findings show that students lost 0.25 standard deviations of existing knowledge during the closure, and a further 0.23 standard deviations in foregone learning compared to the expected trajectory had schools remained open. Further loss comes from a slowdown in learning after schools reopened, with students gaining 7 points’ less new knowledge in math per 100 days, the majority of which is not explained by increased dropout. Our findings are relevant for other low-income and lower-middle income contexts: remote learning during school closure was in general ineffectual, necessitating urgent action to remediate lost learning; and children who dropped out had the highest learning losses and now require out-of-school learning opportunities.en
dc.identifierhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099228107102426641/IDU11048a4271b7ba14ca51971d1deef54c9a98b
dc.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-10843
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10986/41878
dc.languageEnglish
dc.language.isoen_US
dc.publisherWashington, DC: World Bank
dc.relation.ispartofseriesPolicy Research Working Paper; 10843
dc.rightsCC BY 3.0 IGO
dc.rights.holderWorld Bank
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/
dc.subjectEDUCATION QUALITY
dc.subjectLEARNING
dc.subjectPRIMARY SCHOOL
dc.subjectEDUCATION POLICY
dc.subjectFIELD EXPERIMENT
dc.subjectMODELLING
dc.subjectSDG 4
dc.subjectCOVID-19
dc.titleLearning Loss as a Result of COVID-19en
dc.title.subtitleEvidence from a Longitudinal Survey in Malawien
dc.typeWorking Paper
dspace.entity.typePublication
okr.crossref.titleLearning Loss as a Result of COVID-19: Evidence from a Longitudinal Survey in Malawi
okr.date.disclosure2024-07-16
okr.date.lastmodified2024-07-10T00:00:00Zen
okr.doctypePolicy Research Working Paper
okr.doctypePublications & Research
okr.docurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099228107102426641/IDU11048a4271b7ba14ca51971d1deef54c9a98b
okr.guid099228107102426641
okr.identifier.docmidIDU-1048a427-b7ba-4ca5-971d-deef54c9a98b
okr.identifier.doi10.1596/1813-9450-10843
okr.identifier.doihttps://doi.org/10.1596/1813-9450-10843
okr.identifier.externaldocumentum34362881
okr.identifier.internaldocumentum34362881
okr.identifier.reportWPS10843
okr.import.id4799
okr.importedtrueen
okr.language.supporteden
okr.pdfurlhttp://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/099228107102426641/pdf/IDU11048a4271b7ba14ca51971d1deef54c9a98b.pdfen
okr.region.administrativeAfrica Eastern and Southern (AFE)
okr.region.countryMalawi
okr.sectorPublic Administration - Education,Primary Education
okr.themeDisaster Risk Management,Disaster Response and Recovery,Disability,Gender,Human Development and Gender,Education Facilities,Social Protection,Social Development and Protection,Access to Education,Education Financing,Urban and Rural Development,Teachers,Education Governance, School-Based Management,Education
okr.topicEducation::Education For All
okr.topicEducation::Education Indicators and Statistics
okr.topicEducation::Primary Education
okr.unitEducation AFR 1 (HAEE1)
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