Primary school mathematics during the COVID-19 pandemic: No evidence of learning gaps in adaptive practicing results

Martijn Meeter

doi:10.1016/j.tine.2021.100163

Primary school mathematics during the COVID-19 pandemic: No evidence of learning gaps in adaptive practicing results

Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article › Academic › peer-review

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic induced many governments to close schools for months. Evidence so far suggests that learning has suffered as a result. Here, it is investigated whether forms of computer-assisted learning mitigated the decrements in learning observed during the lockdown. Method: Performance of 53,656 primary school students who used adaptive practicing software for mathematics was compared to performance of similar students in the preceding year. Results: During the lockdown progress was faster than it had been the year before, contradicting results reported so far. These enhanced gains were correlated with increased use, and remained after the lockdown ended. This was the case for all grades but more so for lower grades and for weak students, but less so for students in schools with disadvantaged populations. Conclusions: These results suggest that adaptive practicing software may mitigate, or even reverse, the negative effects of school closures on mathematics learning.

Original language	English
Article number	100163
Pages (from-to)	1-8
Number of pages	8
Journal	TRENDS IN NEUROSCIENCE AND EDUCATION
Volume	25
Early online date	3 Oct 2021
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tine.2021.100163
Publication status	Published - Dec 2021

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
The study was conducted under protocol #2019?147, approved by the institutional review board of the Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. The author wishes to thank Snappet for their collaboration, which occurred with the understanding that Snappet would have no influence on the final report, and Ilan Libedinsky Pardo for the original programming of the analyses.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author

Copyright:
Copyright 2021 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.

Keywords

Adaptive practice
COVID-19
Mathematics
Primary school
School closures

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1016/j.tine.2021.100163

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abstract = "Background: The COVID-19 pandemic induced many governments to close schools for months. Evidence so far suggests that learning has suffered as a result. Here, it is investigated whether forms of computer-assisted learning mitigated the decrements in learning observed during the lockdown. Method: Performance of 53,656 primary school students who used adaptive practicing software for mathematics was compared to performance of similar students in the preceding year. Results: During the lockdown progress was faster than it had been the year before, contradicting results reported so far. These enhanced gains were correlated with increased use, and remained after the lockdown ended. This was the case for all grades but more so for lower grades and for weak students, but less so for students in schools with disadvantaged populations. Conclusions: These results suggest that adaptive practicing software may mitigate, or even reverse, the negative effects of school closures on mathematics learning.",

keywords = "Adaptive practice, COVID-19, Mathematics, Primary school, School closures",

author = "Martijn Meeter",

note = "Funding Information: The study was conducted under protocol #2019?147, approved by the institutional review board of the Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. The author wishes to thank Snappet for their collaboration, which occurred with the understanding that Snappet would have no influence on the final report, and Ilan Libedinsky Pardo for the original programming of the analyses. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2021 The Author Copyright: Copyright 2021 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.",

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N2 - Background: The COVID-19 pandemic induced many governments to close schools for months. Evidence so far suggests that learning has suffered as a result. Here, it is investigated whether forms of computer-assisted learning mitigated the decrements in learning observed during the lockdown. Method: Performance of 53,656 primary school students who used adaptive practicing software for mathematics was compared to performance of similar students in the preceding year. Results: During the lockdown progress was faster than it had been the year before, contradicting results reported so far. These enhanced gains were correlated with increased use, and remained after the lockdown ended. This was the case for all grades but more so for lower grades and for weak students, but less so for students in schools with disadvantaged populations. Conclusions: These results suggest that adaptive practicing software may mitigate, or even reverse, the negative effects of school closures on mathematics learning.

AB - Background: The COVID-19 pandemic induced many governments to close schools for months. Evidence so far suggests that learning has suffered as a result. Here, it is investigated whether forms of computer-assisted learning mitigated the decrements in learning observed during the lockdown. Method: Performance of 53,656 primary school students who used adaptive practicing software for mathematics was compared to performance of similar students in the preceding year. Results: During the lockdown progress was faster than it had been the year before, contradicting results reported so far. These enhanced gains were correlated with increased use, and remained after the lockdown ended. This was the case for all grades but more so for lower grades and for weak students, but less so for students in schools with disadvantaged populations. Conclusions: These results suggest that adaptive practicing software may mitigate, or even reverse, the negative effects of school closures on mathematics learning.

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KW - School closures

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Primary school mathematics during the COVID-19 pandemic: No evidence of learning gaps in adaptive practicing results

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

UN SDGs

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