A University of Queensland (UQ) study is examining the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on young people’s learning.
Director of UQ’s Institute for Social Science Research (ISSR), Mark Western said the pandemic may have deepened the divide between certain groups of children.
“If we don’t address these problems now, we run the risk of these children not achieving their education potential,” Professor Western said.
Through a grant from the Paul Ramsay Foundation, ISSR researchers are rapidly assessing the needs of those children who face poorer educational outcomes and employment prospects.
Professor Western said three groups of young people were identified as the most likely to have their learning outcomes compromised.
“We know that young children who started school already behind, older students who were already at risk of disengaging, and those who have had contact with the child protection system will need significant support,” he said.
Professor Western said the Learning through COVID-19 project was structured across three stages, and the research team was finalising interviews with at-risk children, parents, educators and service providers to gain first-hand accounts of their learning experiences throughout the pandemic.
“By gathering this evidence, we have the opportunity to assess and recommend the most suitable evidence-based solutions to ideally come back stronger than before the pandemic,” Professor Western said.
