Four-fifths of school students say pandemic harmed their education

Four-fifths of students say their academic progress has suffered due to the pandemic, with state school pupils more than twice as likely to feel that they have fallen behind their classmates than independent school pupils, according to a new study led by UCL researchers. Published today, the findings are the first to be published from the COVID Social Mobility & Opportunities (COSMO) study - a major national youth cohort study analysing data on around 13,000 young people from more than 500 schools across England. A collaboration between the UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities (CEPEO), the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies (CLS) and the Sutton Trust, the ongoing project aims to explore the short-, mediumand long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on educational inequality, wellbeing and social mobility. The study shows that four-fifths (80%) of the study's 12,828 participants, who are due to complete A-levels and equivalent qualifications in summer 2023, believe their academic progress has suffered because of the pandemic - with half saying they are now less motivated to study and learn. Over 35% of those at state schools feel they have fallen behind their classmates - more than double the figure for independent school students (15%). The authors found that almost half of young people have accessed no catch-up learning and a large majority have not accessed tutoring. The most available option - extra online classes - was offered to just half of the study's participants and taken up by less than a third.