World Bank: COVID closures cause significant learning loss, urge support for marginalized students

World Bank Senior Adviser Harry Patrinos presented findings at the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) indicating that prolonged school closures due to COVID-19 led to significant learning losses, with each week of closure resulting in nearly a 1 percent decline in learning levels.

Patrinos noted that twenty weeks of closure equate to almost a year's worth of lost education and highlighted the disproportionate impact on disadvantaged students despite factors like income level and Internet access having no significant effect.

The study also warned about long-term consequences such as reduced human capital development and earnings, particularly affecting younger and less privileged learners.

Patrinos urged governments to focus on direct support for marginalized populations through tutoring and extended school hours while protecting education budgets, emphasizing the need for urgent interventions to address learning losses.

Additionally, PIDS highlighted a recent study by its President Aniceto Orbeta Jr., which identified key factors disproportionately affecting lower socioeconomic classes during remote learning periods.