A new state audit shows that on average, Georgia’s public school students fell between three and six months behind during the pandemic. The report says officials need to carefully target resources to help kids catch up.
When COVID-19 hit Georgia in March of 2020, schools shifted quickly to virtual learning. The next fall, some districts stuck with online learning while others moved to a hybrid system where they alternated between face-to-face learning and virtual days. Students fell behind because, for most, online learning wasn’t as effective as in-person instruction, according to the audit.
That was especially true for students in vulnerable populations. Economically disadvantaged students, for example, often lacked access to healthcare, food and housing, and internet connectivity. Parents of those students are also more likely to work in jobs that don’t have telework options and may have depended on older children to care for their younger siblings during the day, the report says. The audit says schools had a hard time delivering services to English language learners and students with disabilities.
By the end of the 2021 school year, students in majority-white schools were, on average, four months behind in math and three months behind in reading, according to the audit. Students in majority-Black schools were, on average, six months behind in math and reading. The report shows students in low-income schools were further behind than students in more affluent areas. Students in urban and suburban schools were further behind than students in rural areas, the report says.
Although the percentage of virtual students decreased during the 2020-21 school year, most Asian-American students (58%) and almost half of Black students (49%) opted to remain virtual when schools offered an in-person option. Twenty-eight percent of Hispanic students and 15 % of white students chose to remain online when given the choice to return, the report shows.
