The pandemic has had a significant impact on student preparedness for higher education. U.S. students returned to school in the fall of 2021, and some began catching up on unfinished learning, but others are falling further behind, widening pre-pandemic gaps, according to a recent study by McKinsey. “We’re seeing that a significant number of students in the K-12 system and entering college are significantly behind,” according to Jimmy Sarakatsannis, a partner in McKinsey’s Washington, D.C. office and leader of the firm’s U.S. education practice.
Sarakatsannis addressed an audience at the "Student Preparedness: Bridging the Learning Gap in 2022" session for Fierce Education’s online event, Higher Education: Helping Faculty Navigate Top Challenges in This New Blending Learning Environment. The session focused on how higher education institutions can better acclimate incoming students to make up for the lack of preparation they may have experienced. Audience members reported a learning gap, with a poll revealing that 73 percent of audience members said they are seeing a learning and social gap among incoming freshmen at their college or university.
In general, according to the McKinsey study, the pandemic caused an approximately 10 percent decrease in academic proficiency for high school students, who will then be unprepared for college after graduation. Today’s incoming freshmen are entering colleges and universities unprepared for the rigorous coursework, says Sarakatsannis. What’s more, the discrepancies are larger for students of color. “The gap between students in majority-black schools and students in majority-white schools is now three months wider than it was before the pandemic,” he pointed out. Additional disparities also can be attributed to schools in lower-income areas and students subject to in-person school closures. In addition, chronic absenteeism has increased by 2.7 times since before the pandemic.
There are efforts underway to support students in K-12 schools across the country and help them catch up on learning lost during the pandemic. Government-funded Academic Recovery programs include high intensity tutoring and academically-focused summer programs, extended days and additional staffing in schools. However, these supports are not reaching students equitably, Sarakatsannis pointed out.
Potential implications on higher education include lower enrollment because fewer students are graduating every year; a higher percentage of students who might need to be enrolled in remedial education before taking credit-bearing college courses; and an increase in the number of students who mental health support.