Students have lost 3.2 months of learning, Texas Education Agency study finds

Virtual learning has been difficult for families and children, and now we have some idea of just how difficult it has been.

According to the Texas Education Agency, the average student lost 3.2 months of learning during school closures since last March, in addition to the typical 2.5 months of summer learning loss.

Researchers were able to come up with the amount of instruction loss by comparing beginning-of-year assessments given to 648,609 students from 334 different school systems.

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Plus, seven other local school districts reported an increased number of students failing at least one class compared to last year.

According to the TEA, the beginning-of-year assessments covered the same grades, subjects and courses that are provided for STAAR and were constructed from previously released STAAR test items.

The study compared assessment scores from the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year relative to normal academic school years.

The TEA says it hopes to be able to better adjust the curriculum for the next academic school year to help balance out the tough year.