COVID Slide – Understanding The Effect on Learning
Where we are
As the scholastic year comes to a close, many are finding that the summer schedule isn’t too distinct from quarantine day to day life. Sure, students no longer have online classes. But the burden of self-scheduling and the demands of time management are still present. For many students, summertime usually signals the “summer slide”. This is usually a period of gradual distancing from academic information. Summertime can oftentimes ferry in a kind of academic amnesia. This year’s circumstances, in particular, are leaving many students at risk of falling behind. Experts are terming this year’s summer slide, unprecedented in its severity, the COVID slide.
It’s normal for students to forget information that they have learned. But the spring is typically crucial for students to solidify concepts. This spring’s unprecedented pandemic did not allow educators the opportunity to adequately prepare for the remote classroom. Students, who perhaps struggle with self-organization, time-management, or motivation are the students are most vulnerable to the COVID slide.
Predictions
Without the typical end of year assessments, the retention rate amongst students will fall. Organizations like the NWEA, the Northwest Evaluation Association, have begun to conduct studies. They hope to predicting what the fallout will look like. If educators can predict the deviation between students, they can correct the consequences of the COVID slide. Students are expected to retain only seventy percent of reading knowledge and only fifty percent of math knowledge according to the NWEA. The same as if half of the math curriculum were never learned.
Experts are suggesting that students may be entering the fall academic cycle. Some with as much as one or two scholastic levels between them. With such a gap between the learning levels of students, teachers will have their work cut out for them. The scholastic year of 2020 and 2021 will pose intense challenges for educators, as standardizing curriculum will be particularly difficult. Starting at such different points, how can educators adequately prepare students for the rest of their academic trajectory? How can they ensure that students can end the year in the same place?
How to solve the COVID slide?
The COVID slide is a frustrating and demoralizing reality. But, the good news is that there is still a great deal of time to remedy and curb its impact. Knowing the projected consequences of the COVID slide gives parents an advantage. They can take action to ensure that their students do not fall too far behind. During this summer, it is particularly imperative that parents take action to ensure that their child’s education is supplemented. Taking initiative this summer can allow your student to thrive and flourish during the academic year, despite the setbacks of the COVID slide. This can have a lasting impact, not only for the coming scholastic year, but also for the years to come.
Gooroo is here to help! Our educators are committed to helping combat the devastating repercussions of the COVID slide. We are ready to work one on with your students. We can ensure that they have mastered the concepts from last year’s curriculum and are ready to confidently take on their next academic chapter!
About the Author
