Schools

‘Wake-up call’ as primary pupils struggle with maths post-Covid

Younger children still weeks behind pre-lockdown norms, showing PM faces 'many obstacles' in maths to 18 ambition

Younger children still weeks behind pre-lockdown norms, showing PM faces 'many obstacles' in maths to 18 ambition

11 May 2023, 0:01

More from this author

Primary school children are still struggling to catch up on maths in the wake of Covid, a study has found.

Education Policy Institute bosses said their latest research with Renaissance Learning into education recovery should act as a “wake-up call” to the government, as they warned more needs to be done to tackle pandemic learning loss.

The latest report found the gap in reading outcomes between the most and least disadvantaged primaries is about 6 per cent wider than when the virus broke out.

And in maths youngsters aged between four and 11 are said to be about five weeks behind expectations prior to the outbreak more than three years ago.

EPI head of analysis Jon Andrews said “it is clear the effects of Covid are still being felt” in the classroom.

“There is a risk that government focus on education recovery is waning, and this analysis is a wake-up call that there is still much work to be done.

“The prime minister has set out a bold ambition for all young people to study maths up to age 18. There are many obstacles to meeting that, and this analysis highlights that among them is the fact younger children have fallen behind in their maths as a result of the pandemic.”

The study did, though, find “outcomes in reading appear to have recovered for most year groups”. EPI said this was consistent with national curriculum assessments at the end of key stage 2 last spring.

But the gap in reading outcomes between primary schools “with high and low levels of disadvantage is equivalent to about 12.3 months of learning”. The figure stood at 11.7 months before the first lockdown.

The authors of the document said it will be “the first in a series of reports that will be produced over the coming year as we ensure policy makers have access to robust data” on pupil performance.  

This comes after a government-backed project run by Renaissance and the EPI in October 2021 found there was “notable catch-up” for primary-aged pupils in reading.

The Department for Education was approached for comment.

Latest education roles from

Senior Quality Officer

Senior Quality Officer

University of Lancashire

Chief Financial Officer

Chief Financial Officer

Minerva Learning Trust

Head of Programme 2D Studies – City Lit

Head of Programme 2D Studies – City Lit

FEA

Group Director of Governance & Company Secretary

Group Director of Governance & Company Secretary

New City College

Sponsored posts

Sponsored post

IncludEd Conference: Get Inclusion Ready

As we all clamber to make sense of the new Ofsted framework, it can be hard to know where...

SWAdvertorial
Sponsored post

Helping every learner use AI responsibly

AI didn’t wait to be invited into the classroom. It burst in mid-lesson. Across UK schools, pupils are already...

SWAdvertorial
Sponsored post

Retire Early, Live Fully: What Teachers Need to Consider First

Specialist Financial Adviser, William Adams, from Wesleyan Financial Services discusses what teachers should be considering when it comes to...

SWAdvertorial
Sponsored post

AI Safety: From DfE Guidance to Classroom Confidence

Darren Coxon, edtech consultant and AI education specialist, working with The National College, explores the DfE’s expectations for AI...

SWAdvertorial

More from this theme

Schools

School uniform: New rules to meet Labour’s cap revealed

Government guidance tells schools to confirm changes ASAP, consider legal advice and lets parents complain to government

Jack Dyson
Schools

AI could analyse lessons delivered by new teachers under NIOT pilot

Artificial intelligence could be used to analyse recordings of lessons by early career teachers under a new trial being...

Lydia Chantler-Hicks
Politics, Schools

Reform government would ‘root out teachers brainwashing kids’ says MP Lee Anderson

Reform UK members tell party conference of need to crack down on 'brainwashing' teachers and stop schools 'becoming indoctrination...

Lydia Chantler-Hicks
Schools

Farage: ‘Let’s start teaching trades and services at school’

Reform leader also says he ‘will not stand for kids’ minds being poisoned in schools with a twisted interpretation...

Lydia Chantler-Hicks

Your thoughts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *