Ongoing COVID-related absence Many schools are still working on getting back to pre-pandemic attendance levels. Schools report that much absence is directly related to COVID-19. Schools described a range of direct and indirect reasons for COVID-19-related absences, including:
pupils testing positive for COVID-19
COVID-19-related anxiety among both parents and pupils
poorer mental health among pupils
rescheduled or rearranged term-time holidays
low resilience to setbacks or illness
Some schools had more COVID-19-related absences among disadvantaged pupils (often those for whom they received pupil premium funding), pupils with SEND and specific year groups (for example, Year 8, Year 11 and sixth form). Leaders are tackling this through family support, designated staff members, follow-up phone calls or home visits, and clubs for those whose attendance is particularly low. The latest annual report from the Association of Directors of Children’s Services suggests an increase in children being electively home educated as a result of the pandemic.[footnote 2] A few school leaders said that, since they have fully reopened, some pupils who had moved to elective home education have now returned to school full-time. The newest intake of pupils Children coming into the Reception Year have missed out on or had interrupted nursery provision. This has resulted in the newest intake of pupils struggling more with peer interactions, behaviour, school readiness and attitudes to learning. Some teachers said that the impact of the pandemic on Reception pupils was bigger than they had expected. Schools had found that pupils had a wider range of starting points. As discussed in our briefing on early years, the pandemic has hindered opportunities for children’s language and communication development. Similarly, schools said that some Year 1 and Year 2 pupils were displaying poorer behaviours, including having difficulties socialising with peers. They also had gaps in phonics knowledge. In secondary schools, Year 7 pupils struggled with the behaviour expectations of their new school and took longer to settle in. Schools suggested that this was because to the transition process between primary and secondary school was unusual. Some schools described Year 8 in a similar way, which may reflect that their first year of secondary school was also greatly affected by the pandemic. Overall, schools said that Year 7 pupils had a wider range of starting points and greater knowledge gaps in specific subjects compared with previous cohorts. The subjects and skills that were commonly mentioned include: reading, mathematics, writing stamina, science (particularly in practical skills) and languages. Schools said that disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND have been particularly affected by the pandemic. They had concerns about the social and emotional health of pupils with SEND. One school described its pupils with SEND as ‘not secondary ready’. Leaders in some schools mentioned that the pandemic has exacerbated the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers. A few schools said that lockdown had worsened behaviour among these pupils, including more persistent absences and exclusions and lower engagement with learning. Knowledge and skills in specific areas Schools identified a wide range of subject-specific areas that continued to be affected by the pandemic, either because teaching had been missed or because pupils did not learn well remotely. How much pupils had learned, and how secure they were in this knowledge, depended on whether they were in school during lockdowns, how much they had engaged with remote learning and how independently they could work at home. Primary school pupils’ learning was often dependent on the level of support parents were able to give and the confidence parents had in helping their children in different subjects. Gaps in literacy and language were frequently noted across both primary and secondary schools. Specific areas of learning loss include: writing stamina, spelling, vocabulary, punctuation, handwriting, and – in particular – phonics knowledge. One school noted that the latter had negatively affected pupils’ ability to properly access other subjects, which all require reading. School leaders said that most pupils had some gaps in mathematics knowledge that they had identified and were addressing this term. In primary schools, teachers identified common gaps in key stage 1 pupils’ knowledge of place value, number and symbol recognition, and number bonds. As we identified in last year’s COVID-19-themed briefings, schools found it challenging to teach practical skills remotely. Some pupils are still catching up on missed teaching of practical skills in subjects such as geography, science, music, technologies and art. In the early years, schools had noticed delays in children’s fine motor skills. Many schools also identified that pupils had missed out on PE and general physical activity. Leaders said that some pupils have returned to school unfit, more overweight and lacking physical resilience and stamina. A smaller number of school leaders said that the pandemic continued to affect the teaching of history and languages during the autumn term. This is due to these subjects having more to catch up on as some content was not taught while schools were closed or was difficult to teach remotely. In history, this has resulted in gaps in pupils’ knowledge of chronology and their ability to use sources, as well as pupils missing out on history school trips. In languages, pupils have found speaking and listening tasks more challenging. Many secondary school leaders said that key stage 4 pupils had missed out on careers education and work experience opportunities. Schools are trying to catch up on this. However, in some schools, careers education and work experience opportunities have not yet restarted, remain virtual or are reduced compared with before the pandemic.