Two years into the pandemic: How education systems have coped with the second year of COVID The COVID-19 pandemic has caused massive disruptions to the learning of students at all levels of education. Although the availability of vaccines has improved the situation in most OECD countries, the school year 2021/22 was still marked by – sometimes severe – restriction to regular teaching and learning activities. The OECD – in collaboration with UNESCO, UNICEF and The World Bank – has been monitoring the situation across countries and is collecting data on how each education system is responding to the crisis, from school closures and remote learning to remedial measures. The latest round of data collection covers the impact of COVID-19 during the school year 2021/22 and the recovery policies implemented by countries during this period. This presentation show the findings from a survey of more than 30 OECD education systems.

1. Two years into the pandemic
How education systems have coped with the second
year of COVID
Andreas Schleicher
06 June 2022
OECD Director for Education and Skills

2. Closures and absences
1

3. School closures reach one school year in some countries…
C1 - Total number of instruction days in the last three school years (excluding school holidays, public holidays and
weekends) where schools were fully closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, at lower secondary level
0
50
100
150
200
250
School year 2019-20 (or 2020) School year 2020-21 (or 2021) School year 2021-22 (or 2022)

4. …and almost two years when partial closures are taken into account
C1&C2 Total number of instruction days in the last three school years (excluding school holidays, public holidays and
weekends) where schools were fully or partially closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, at lower secondary level
* Partial closures are missing
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
Full closures Partial closures

5. Countries with lower PISA scores tended to have longer closures
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440
460
480
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520
540
0 50 100 150 200 250
PISA
scores
(reading)
Days of full school closures

6. Only half of OECD countries collect information on teacher and student
absences nationally
C3 - Have you collected statistics on the absence of (1) students and (2) teachers over the 3 school years covered by the pandemic
(school year 2019/20 or 2020, school year 2020/21 or 2021, school year 2021/22 or 2022) ?
0 2 4 6 8 10 12
Schools/Districts/the most local level of governance could decide at
their own discretion to collect statistics
Yes, national statistics are monitored and available
Yes, national statistics are monitored but not available
No statistics available
Statistics on teachers' absences Statistics on students' absences
Number of countries

7. Countries that monitored absences have seen increases
C4 - Have you observed an increase (when schools were fully open) in the number of absences of students and/or teachers (primary education)
for at least some period(s) over the 3 school years covered by the pandemic compared to absences observed in the school year 2018/19 (2019) ?
0 1 2 3 4 5
Significantly increased (more than 5%)
Slightly increased (between 1 and 5%)
Stayed the same (<1% change)
Teachers Students
BFR, ESP, ITA
CRI, FRA, NOR, PRT
GBR, JPN, SWE, TUR
CRI, ESP, FRA
BFR, NOR, PRT
LUX, SWE
Number of countries

8. National examinations and
standardised assessments
2

9. National examinations are returning to normal in some countries, but
are still restricted in others
T4 - Have you made any of the following changes to upper secondary general programmes examinations
due to the pandemic, or are these changes planned?
0 5 10 15 20 25
No changes were made to national examinations
Adjusted the mode of administration (e.g. computer-based or online-
based)
Introduced alternative assessment/validation of learning (e.g.
appraisal of student learning portfolio)
Canceled the examinations and used an alternative approach for high-
stakes decision making (e.g. calculated grades)
Adjusted the content of the examinations (e.g. subjects covered or
number of questions)
Postponed/rescheduled the examinations
Introduced additional health and safety measures (e.g. extra space
between desks for distancing students)
School year 2021/2022 (2022) School year 2020/2021 (2021) School year 2019/2020 (2020)
Number of countries

10. Computer-based examinations at tertiary level have been discontinued
in most countries
T4 - Have you made any of the following changes to tertiary examinations due to the pandemic, or are these changes planned?
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Adjusted the content of the examinations (e.g. subjects covered or
number of questions)
No changes were made to national examinations
Postponed/rescheduled the examinations
Adjusted the mode of administration (e.g. computer-based or online-
based)
Introduced additional health and safety measures (e.g. extra space
between desks for distancing students)
School year 2021/2022 (2022) School year 2020/2021 (2021) School year 2019/2020 (2020)
Number of countries

11. Most countries conducted standardised assessments of learning outcomes
A1 - Did standardised testing programmes at upper secondary level continue to take place in 2020/21 (or 2021) and in 2021/22 (or 2022)?
0 5 10 15 20 25
No
Schools/Districts/the most local level of governance could decide at
their own discretion
Yes
School year 2021/22 (or 2022) School year 2020/21 (or 2021)
Number of countries

12. The impact of the pandemic on mental health is widely studied
A2 - Have there been studies to evaluate the effects of the pandemic that were undertaken in 2021 and/or 2022?
0 5 10 15 20 25
Impact of school closures on learning outcomes (standardised
subnational assessment)
Impact of COVID on non-cognitive skills
Impact of COVID-19 on the relations between parents and students
during lockdowns
Impact of school closures on learning outcomes (standardised national
assessment)
Effectiveness of distance-learning strategies during school closures
Impact of COVID on mental health and well-being of teachers (levels of
stress, anxiety and depression)
Impact of COVID on mental health and well-being of students (levels of
stress, anxiety and depression)
Number of countries

13. Recovery measures
3

14. Most countries offered additional support students affected by the
pandemic
R1 - Were national programmes implemented specifically to provide additional support to students affected by the pandemic
in the school year 2021/2022? (e.g. remedial education programmes, mental health support programmes …)
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
No Yes, as in school year 2020/2021 (or 2021) Yes, contrary to school year 2020/2021 (or 2021)
CAN, CHE, EST, ISL,
NOR, SVN
COL, DEU, SVK,
SWE

15. Recovery measures will continue in 2022/23 at reduced levels
R3 - Has your country implemented the following policy measures at a national level due to the COVID-19 pandemic
in the school year 2021/2022 (or 2022), and/or will your country implement them in the next school year?
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
Cash transfers (i.e. allocations or subsidies given to students or
family) to increase enrollment among students from…
Individualized self-learning programmes (computer-assisted or
pencil-and-paper based)
Accelerated education programmes or catch-up programmes for
students who dropped out of school
Early Warning Systems to identify students at risk of dropping out
Referral systems for students in need of specialized services
Strengthened / provided additional school nutrition services (e.g.,
school feeding programmes, free or discount on school meals)
Strengthened / provided additional WASH (water, sanitation and
hygiene) services
Psychosocial and mental health support to students (e.g.
counseling)
Plans for implentation in school year 2022/2023 Implemented in school year 2021/2022 (or 2022)
Number of countries

16. Most countries evaluate recovery measure or plan to do so
R2 - Have the results of national programmes implemented in the school year 2021/2022 (or 2022) been evaluated,
or are there plans for such evaluation?
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
No national programmes implemented
Programmes were assessed in a standardized way (at the sub-national or national level)
Programmes were not yet assessed but the government has a plan to assess them
The government has no plan to assess the programmes
CAN, CHE, EST, ISL, NOR, SVN ESP, FRA, LUX, LVA, MEX, POL,
TUR
AUT, CRI, DEU, FIN, ISR, PRT COL, ITA, SVK,
SWE

17. Subsidised school meals at pre-primary and cash transfers at tertiary
level will be important recovery measures in 2022/23
R3 - Will your country implement the following policy measures at a national level due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the next school year?
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Cash transfers (i.e. allocations or subsidies given to students or family)
to increase enrollment among students from disadvantaged families
Increased instruction time (e.g. through summer schools, extended
school day, school week or academic year)
Tutoring programmes (in person or remote) or financial support for
tutoring
Early Warning Systems to identify students at risk of dropping out
Referral systems for students in need of specialized services
Strengthened / provided additional school nutrition services (e.g.,
school feeding programmes, free or discount on school meals)
Strengthened / provided additional WASH (water, sanitation and
hygiene) services (e.g., creation of toilet and handwashing facilities,…
Psychosocial and mental health support to students (e.g. counseling)
pre-primary primary to upper secondary tertiary
Number of countries

18. Digitalisation
4

19. Many countries plan to maintain their efforts to digitalise education…
D1 - Which of the following measures for the digitalisation of education implemented due to COVID-19 do you plan to maintain
or further develop beyond the Covid-19 pandemic?
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18
Enhanced use of digitalized assessments/exams
Enhanced provision of pre-service digital training to teachers
Enhanced provision of distance learning
Enhanced provision of hybrid learning
Enhanced provision of digital tools at the school
Enhanced provision of digital training for students
Primary Upper secondary (general) Tertiary
Number of countries

20. …, but many countries have not adapted their regulatory and
institutional frameworks
 D2
D2 - Has the framework governing digital education changed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic?
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
No (and none planned)
No but there are plans for this
Yes
Regulatory framework Institutional framework
LTU, LUX, SVK
ITA, LUX, SVK
BFR, CRI, GBR, ISR, ITA, JPN, POL, PRT, USA
AUT, BFR, CRI, DNK, ISR, LTU, POL, PRT, USA
Number of countries

21. Mobile phones are increasingly used in classrooms
D3 - Which digital solutions for distance learning that were offered during the pandemic will continue to be offered afterwards?
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16
Online platforms
Television
Mobile phones (via call, text, email … )
Radio
No
Yes - as complementary support
Yes - as a valid form of delivery
Yes - as both a valid form of delivery and complimentary support

22. Many countries invested in digitalisation
F3 - Which of the following measures for digitalisation have been taken to support education due to the pandemic
and have a direct impact on public budget?
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20
Additional professional development activities for teachers (e.g.
workshops and webinars) directly targeting the effective use of
technologies
Deployment of new technological devices or investment in
infrastructure directly targeting distance learning (e.g. connectivity,
internet connection, electricity).
Purchasing new technologies for distance learning of students (e.g.
computers, tablets)
Purchasing new technologies for use in classrooms by teachers or
students (e.g. computers, tablets)
School year 2021/22 School year 2020/21
Number of countries

23. One-third of countries significantly increased their education budgets in
2021
F1 - Have public education resources for the financial year 2021 changed (nominal change) as compared to previous financial year (2020)?
14
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
Yes. Significantly increased (more than 5%) Yes. Slightly increased (between 1 and 5%)
Yes. Slightly decreased (between 1 and 5%) Yes. Significantly decreased (more than 5%)
C
O
L
E
S
T
ESP, ITA, LTU, LUX, NLD, SVK, TUR, USA