In a school-wide survey for teachers, nearly 9 out of 10 participants acknowledged that they had reshaped their expectations for assignments post-pandemic.
English Learner teacher Susan Blethen changed her approach to homework following the 2020 quarantine to help students catch up quickly.
“I think we are more thoughtful about what homework we’re giving,” Blethen said.
Five years after the pandemic, schools across the United States are still tackling the lingering academic effects. Today, according to the 2025 Education Recovery Scorecard, the average American public school student is half a grade below proficiency in math and a quarter of a grade below proficiency in English.
Sociology Professor Susan Munkres has seen these clear academic set-backs at UVM.
“I definitely have seen writing that didn’t look to me like college-level writing,” Munkres said.
This may be attributed to a loss of reading methods normally taught in middle school. For example, the Chronicle of Higher Education reported that only 17% of 13-year-olds in 2020 said they read during their free time.
One of the biggest academic challenges post-pandemic was the rise in absenteeism. Nationally, chronic absenteeism, defined as missing 10 or more school days, increased from about 15% before the pandemic to 28% after the pandemic according to a study by Brookings – and still remains at nearly 28%. The same held true at BHS which reported 28% absenteeism in 2024.
Several reasons were cited by the Annie E. Casey Foundation for this increase in absenteeism: a loss of learning leading to a loss of engagement, being absent was normalized, increased economic / transportation struggles, and an increase in mental health issues.
“We are spending a lot more time dealing with students who have anxiety and stop coming to class and don’t reach out for help,” Munkres said. “[A number of students] started asking to have much more flexible attendance and/or to come to class on Zoom.”
As part of the struggle to adapt to this new reality, teachers sometimes grade more easily. Studies since the pandemic have shown that student grades are less likely to accurately reflect their proficiency.
Data from the ACT shows that since 2016, and particularly during the COVID-19 restrictions, grade inflation in secondary schools has sharply accelerated. Most students taking the ACT have claimed to be labelled as “A” students by their high schools. Despite apparently impressive GPAs on ACT registration forms, the average scores have fallen since 2012. Data from the Department of Education, and the National Assessment of Educational Progress have also found strong evidence of grade inflation and declining achievement.
Beyond the curriculum, the social dimension of school after COVID-19 shifted in light of the widespread experience of isolation during quarantine.
“[The students’] sense of what school was supposed to be changed completely, and the teacher’s sense of what school should be changed a lot, but we definitely knew we had to take care of each other,” Blethen said.
In the face of all these negative effects of the pandemic on education, educators are searching for solutions.
Kathryn Buchan is an English teacher at BHS.
“One of my goals was doing more on paper so that students aren’t looking at screens all day,” Buchan said. “We should encourage them to read more with the goal being that they find a book that they actually like.”
While teachers look for new ways to help their students, experts stress the importance of maintaining grade-appropriate standards and seeking additional support to address learning gaps, rather than diluting curricular expectations.
This approach encourages the development of skills necessary for a student to succeed throughout their educational journey. Susan Blethen, for example, said that she focuses on equipping her students with critical thinking.
“We can’t tell them what to think,” Blethen said, “but we can teach them how to think about stuff.”
