SynthesisNature human behaviour2023
A systematic review and meta-analysis of the evidence on learning during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Synthesis in Nature human behaviour, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 90 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
90 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The COVID-19 pandemic and adolescents' and young adults' experiences at school: A systematic narrative review.Journal of research on adolescence : the official journal of the Society for Research on Adolescence · 2025Pooled it
- Mental health of Canadian youth: A systematic review and meta-analysis of studies examining changes in depression, anxiety, and suicide-related outcomes during the COVID-19 pandemic.Canadian journal of public health = Revue canadienne de sante publique · 2024Pooled it
- Medical education during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic: an umbrella review.Frontiers in medicine · 2024Pooled it
- Pooled it
- The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on Italian primary school children's learning: A systematic review through a psycho-social lens.PloS one · 2024Pooled it
- Coping styles mediate the relation between mindset and academic resilience in adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic: a randomized controlled trial.Scientific reports · 2023Trial
- Article
- Cost of a Measles Outbreak in an Urban Shelter.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- Reframing Pandemic Preparedness: Why Positive-Pressure Exposure Control Merits Formal Public Health Evaluation.JMIR public health and surveillance · 2026Article
- COVID-19-related school closures and students' achievement and motivation: Did teacher support make a difference.NPJ science of learning · 2026Article
- School Readiness, Learning Challenges, and Lifestyle Changes Among Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic.The Journal of school health · 2026Article
- School principals' COVID-19 health literacy and its association with mental health: international findings from 11 countries in Europe and Asia.Health promotion international · 2026Article
- Counterfactual evaluation of elementary and secondary school policies in the COVID-19 pandemic.Nature communications · 2026Article
- COVID-19-induced educational disruptions and children's executive functioning: A longitudinal cohort study.Developmental psychology · 2026Article
- Longitudinal effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on infant and toddler development: a retrospective cohort study.BMJ paediatrics open · 2026Article
- Effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on child development: comparing pre- and post-pandemic developmental process levels.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- How instructional leadership and creativity related factors shape students' reading performance: evidence from a Bayesian multilevel mediation approach using PISA 2022 Türkiye data.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- Prevalence and socio-ecological correlates of adolescent alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use in the Turks and Caicos Islands.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Investigating Longitudinal Trajectories of COVID-19 Disruption: Methodological Challenges and Recommendations.Prevention science : the official journal of the Society for Prevention Research · 2026Article
- Article
30 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
To what extent has the learning progress of school-aged children slowed down during the COVID-19 pandemic? A growing number of studies address this question, but findings vary depending on context. Here we conduct a pre-registered systematic review, quality appraisal and meta-analysis of 42 studies across 15 countries to assess the magnitude of learning deficits during the pandemic. We find a substantial overall learning deficit (Cohen's d = -0.14, 95% confidence interval -0.17 to -0.10), which arose early in the pandemic and persists over time. Learning deficits are particularly large among children from low socio-economic backgrounds. They are also larger in maths than in reading and in middle-income countries relative to high-income countries. There is a lack of evidence on learning progress during the pandemic in low-income countries. Future research should address this evidence gap and avoid the common risks of bias that we identify.
Indexed as
Identifiers
36717609What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.