scholarly journals Did Students Learn Less During the COVID-19 Pandemic? Reading and Mathematics Competencies Before and After the First Pandemic Wave

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johannes Schult ◽  
Nicole Mahler ◽  
Benjamin Fauth ◽  
Marlit Annalena Lindner
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Learning Loss ◽  
School Closures ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Low Achieving Students ◽  
Before And After ◽  
And Mathematics ◽  
Future Education ◽  
Regular Classes ◽  
Reading And Mathematics

The first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted regular classes in spring 2020. Temporary school closures supposedly led to a considerable learning loss, particularly for low-achieving students. Schools in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, were closed for two months. Although distance learning was implemented, students spent less time learning. Additionally, teachers were faced with organizational and technological challenges of remote learning environments. The present study investigates the competencies of fifth-graders, using large-scale assessment results in reading and mathematics from annual mandatory tests in September (each n > 80,000). In line with studies from other countries, competence scores were slightly lower in 2020 compared with the three previous years (–0.07 standard deviations for reading comprehension, –0.09 for operations, and –0.03 for numbers). Low-achieving readers managed to attain pre-pandemic competence levels. On the other hand, low-achieving students seem to have a learning backlog regarding mathematics competencies (such as operations) that deserves attention in future education.

scholarly journals Learning loss due to school closures during the COVID-19 pandemic

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (17) ◽  
pp. e2022376118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Engzell ◽  
Arun Frey ◽  
Mark D. Verhagen
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
School Funding ◽  
Learning Loss ◽  
School Closures ◽  
Cumulative Impact ◽  
School Year ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Face To Face Instruction ◽  
Rich Data

Suspension of face-to-face instruction in schools during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to concerns about consequences for students’ learning. So far, data to study this question have been limited. Here we evaluate the effect of school closures on primary school performance using exceptionally rich data from The Netherlands (n ≈ 350,000). We use the fact that national examinations took place before and after lockdown and compare progress during this period to the same period in the 3 previous years. The Netherlands underwent only a relatively short lockdown (8 wk) and features an equitable system of school funding and the world’s highest rate of broadband access. Still, our results reveal a learning loss of about 3 percentile points or 0.08 standard deviations. The effect is equivalent to one-fifth of a school year, the same period that schools remained closed. Losses are up to 60% larger among students from less-educated homes, confirming worries about the uneven toll of the pandemic on children and families. Investigating mechanisms, we find that most of the effect reflects the cumulative impact of knowledge learned rather than transitory influences on the day of testing. Results remain robust when balancing on the estimated propensity of treatment and using maximum-entropy weights or with fixed-effects specifications that compare students within the same school and family. The findings imply that students made little or no progress while learning from home and suggest losses even larger in countries with weaker infrastructure or longer school closures.

scholarly journals Learning Inequality During the Covid-19 Pandemic

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Per Engzell ◽  
Arun Frey ◽  
Mark D. Verhagen
Keyword(s):  
The Netherlands ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Learning Loss ◽  
Case Scenario ◽  
School Closures ◽  
Cumulative Impact ◽  
School Year ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Face To Face Instruction ◽  
Rich Data

Suspension of face-to-face instruction in schools during the COVID-19 pandemic has led to concerns about consequences for student learning. So far, data to study this question have been limited. Here we evaluate the effect of school closures on primary school performance using exceptionally rich data from the Netherlands (n≈350,000). The Netherlands represents a best-case scenario with a relatively short lockdown (8 weeks) and a high degree of technological preparedness. We use the fact that national exams took place before and after lockdown, and compare progress during this period to the same period in the three previous years using a difference-in-differences design. Our results reveal a learning loss of about 3 percentile points or 0.08 standard deviations. These results remain robust when balancing on the estimated propensity of treatment and using maximum entropy weights, or with fixed-effects specifications that compare students within the same school and family. Losses are up to 55% larger among students from less-educated homes. Investigating mechanisms, we find that most of the effect reflects the cumulative impact of knowledge learned rather than transitory influences on the day of testing. The average learning loss is equivalent to a fifth of a school year, nearly exactly the same period that schools remained closed. These results imply that students made little or no progress whilst learning from home, and suggest much larger losses in countries less prepared for remote learning.

Teachers’ Time Use and Affect Before and After COVID-19 School Closures

AERA Open ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. 233285842110680
Author(s):  
Nathan D. Jones ◽  
Eric M. Camburn ◽  
Benjamin Kelcey ◽  
Esther Quintero
Keyword(s):  
Negative Affect ◽  
Positive Affect ◽  
Time Use ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Specific Work ◽  
Work Experiences ◽  
School Closures ◽  
School Year ◽  
Teachers Experiences ◽  
Before And After

Several large-scale survey efforts have attempted to understand teachers’ experiences in the early months of the pandemic. Our study complements this literature by providing direct evidence of teachers’ work prior to and after the onset of COVID-19. We leverage unique longitudinal time use and affect data on 131 teachers from one district across the 2019–2020 school year. Specifically, we provide a full accounting of teachers’ instructional activities, their reports of their positive affect and negative affect while engaged in these activities, and the extent to which teachers’ work experiences changed post-COVID. Our results suggest a large reduction in teachers’ daily instructional minutes, which were replaced with increased planning, paperwork, and interactions with colleagues and parents. Teachers’ overall positive and negative affect did not change post-COVID. But teachers’ affective responses to specific work activities did. Post-COVID, we saw increases in teachers’ positive affect when with students.

scholarly journals Variability in Synoptic Reporting of Colorectal Cancer pT4a Category and Lymphovascular Invasion

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia R. Naso ◽  
Hui-Min Yang ◽  
David F. Schaeffer
Keyword(s):  
Colorectal Carcinoma ◽  
Real World ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Lymphovascular Invasion ◽  
Interobserver Agreement ◽  
Interobserver Variability ◽  
Prognostic Significance ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Before And After ◽  
The Impact

Context.— Serosal involvement (pT4a category) and lymphovascular invasion have prognostic significance in colorectal carcinoma, but are subject to interobserver variation in assessment. Objectives.— To provide the first large-scale assessment of interobserver variability in pT4a category and lymphovascular invasion reporting in real-world practice and to explore the impact of information from guidelines on variability in reporting these features. Design.— Analysis of 1555 consecutive synoptic reports of colorectal carcinoma was performed using multivariate logistic regression. Interobserver variability before and after the presentation of guideline information was assessed using an image-based survey. Results.— Significant differences in the odds of reporting pT4a versus pT3 category, detecting lymphovascular invasion of any type, and detecting large vessel invasion were identified among hospital sites and for individual pathologists compared with the median pathologist at the same site. Consistent with these results, interobserver agreement was only moderate in the image-based survey regarding T4a staging and lymphovascular invasion (all κ ≤ 0.57). The provision of information from guidelines did not tend to increase interobserver agreement in the survey, though responses in favor of using an elastic stain increased following recommendations for their use. However, when observers were provided with elastic-stained images, interobserver agreement remained only moderate (κ = 0.55). Conclusions.— Real-world reporting of pT4a category and lymphovascular invasion shows substantial variability at both local and regional levels. Our study underscores the need to address these features in quality initiatives, and provides a novel method through which existing synoptic data can be harnessed to monitor reporting patterns and provide individualized feedback.

Using Web-based Testing for Large-Scale Assessment

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura S. Hamilton ◽  
Stephen P. Klein ◽  
William Lorie
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
Scale Assessment

The Effect of Active Site-inhibited Factor VIIa on Tissue Factor-initiated Coagulation Using Platelets before and after Aspirin Administration

1997 ◽  
Vol 78 (04) ◽  
pp. 1202-1208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marianne Kjalke ◽  
Julie A Oliver ◽  
Dougald M Monroe ◽  
Maureane Hoffman ◽  
Mirella Ezban ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Tissue Factor ◽  
Active Site ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Thrombin Generation ◽  
Factor Viia ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Antithrombotic Agent ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Ic50 Values

SummaryActive site-inactivated factor VIIa has potential as an antithrombotic agent. The effects of D-Phe-L-Phe-L-Arg-chloromethyl ketone-treated factor VIla (FFR-FVIIa) were evaluated in a cell-based system mimicking in vivo initiation of coagulation. FFR-FVIIa inhibited platelet activation (as measured by expression of P-selectin) and subsequent large-scale thrombin generation in a dose-dependent manner with IC50 values of 1.4 ± 0.8 nM (n = 8) and 0.9 ± 0.7 nM (n = 7), respectively. Kd for factor VIIa binding to monocytes ki for FFR-FVIIa competing with factor VIIa were similar (11.4 ± 0.8 pM and 10.6 ± 1.1 pM, respectively), showing that FFR-FVIIa binds to tissue factor in the tenase complex with the same affinity as factor VIIa. Using platelets from volunteers before and after ingestion of aspirin (1.3 g), there were no significant differences in the IC50 values of FFR-FVIIa [after aspirin ingestion, the IC50 values were 1.7 ± 0.9 nM (n = 8) for P-selectin expression, p = 0.37, and 1.4 ± 1.3 nM (n = 7) for thrombin generation, p = 0.38]. This shows that aspirin treatment of platelets does not influence the inhibition of tissue factor-initiated coagulation by FFR-FVIIa, probably because thrombin activation of platelets is not entirely dependent upon expression of thromboxane A2.

Large-Scale Assessment of Binding Free Energy Calculations in Active Drug Discovery Projects

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Schindler ◽  
Hannah Baumann ◽  
Andreas Blum ◽  
Dietrich Böse ◽  
Hans-Peter Buchstaller ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Free Energy ◽  
Drug Discovery ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Active Drug ◽  
Binding Free Energy ◽  
Free Energy Calculations ◽  
Energy Calculation ◽  
Large Scale Assessment ◽  
New Public ◽  
Binding Free Energy Calculations

Here we present an evaluation of the binding affinity prediction accuracy of the free energy calculation method FEP+ on internal active drug discovery projects and on a large new public benchmark set.<br>

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