This chapter investigates how the enforced closure of schools in March 2020 due to COVID-19 has impacted the education of students in primary and secondary schools. Responding adults with children in primary and secondary school were asked to rate the impact (if any) that being away from school since March has had on their child’s learning and social development. These respondents were also asked how many hours per day, on average, their child spent on learning activities (e.g. worksheets, online lessons or other materials) provided by the school during the period of enforced school closure.  If a responding parent or guardian had more than one child attending a primary or secondary school, then they were asked to answer the questions in relation to the oldest child only in the particular school.  

Analysis of the survey data is presented for primary and secondary school students separately and provides breakdowns by school cycle (e.g. junior or leaving certificate cycle) and demographic characteristics of the responding adult of the relevant school student. The results relate to students enrolled in primary and secondary school for the academic year 2019/20, except for those who were in sixth year in 2019/20, where data was not collected.

The enforced closure of schools in March 2020 brought about significant changes to the lives of school children in Ireland over the period from March to June. Children’s learning, social development and time spent learning were impacted with children undertaking learning at home and interacting with their teachers and class mates in different ways.

More than four in ten (40.7%) respondents with children in primary school and 45.7% of respondents with children in secondary schools reported that enforced school closures had a Major or Moderate negative impact on their child’s learning.

Of respondent adults with children in primary school, 42.2% reported a Major or Moderate negative impact on their child’s social development due to enforced closure of schools. The comparable rate for respondents with secondary school students was 43.2%.

The enforced closure of schools in March 2020 had the largest negative impact on the learning of senior cycle secondary students (students due to sit the Leaving Certificate in 2021). Of responding adults with these children, 67.0% reported a Major or Moderate negative impact on their child’s learning due to the closure, with a further 32.0% reporting a Mild negative impact.  See Table 2.5 and Figure 2.2.

Almost four in ten (38.6%) parents or guardians with a junior cycle secondary student (those who were in 1^st to 3^rd year of secondary school in the academic year 2019/20) reported a Major or Moderate negative impact on their child’s learning, a further 44.8% reported a Mild negative impact.

Of adults with transition year students 49.1% reported that enforced school closures had a Major or Moderate negative impact on their child’s learning and a further 29.2% reported a Mild negative impact on their child’s learning.

The impact of enforced school closures in March 2020 on secondary students’ social development was most severe for senior cycle students.  Of adults with children in senior cycle secondary school, over one in two (53.3%) reported that school closures had a Major or Moderate impact on their child’s social development.  A further 39.8% of senior cycle students were reported to be Mildly negatively impacted.  See Table 2.6 and Figure 2.3.

The social development of junior cycle secondary students was also reported as being negatively impacted by school closures, with 38.9% reporting that enforced school closures had a Major or Moderate negative impact on their child’s social development and a further 40.1% reported Mild negative impact.

Of parents or guardians with transition year students, 46.7% reported that school closures had a Major or Moderate negative impact on their child’s social development while 7.3% reported that school closures had a positive impact on their child’s social development.

Parents and guardians of children who were in school during the 2019/20 academic year (except leaving certificate students) were asked on average how many hours of learning per day their child spend on worksheets, online lessons or other materials provided by their school.

Of responding parents or guardians of primary school students, 25.0% reported their child undertook learning activities, provided by their school, for 1 hour or less per day on average during the period of school closure, with a further 41.6% reporting their child spent 2 hours per day on learning activities.  See Table 2.3 and Figure 2.4.

Junior primary students (those in first class or lower in the academic year 2019/20) undertook the least school work as 45.4% of respondents with a child in junior primary school reported that their child spent 1 or less hours per day on learning activities provided by their school and a further 36.6% reported their child spent 2 hours per day.

Of respondents with children in senior primary school students (those in second class or higher in the academic year 2019/20), 15.6% indicated their children spent on average 1 hour or less  per day on learning activities, with a further 43.1% reported to have spent 2 hours per day on average.

Of respondents with secondary school children, 16.9% indicated their child spent 1 hour or less per day on learning activities provided by their school, while 24.4% reported that their child spent 2 hours per day on learning activities.See Table 2.6 and Figure 2.5.

Over one in ten (10.7%) respondents with senior cycle secondary students (5th year students in academic year 2019/20) reported that their children spent 1 hour or less on learning activities provided by their school, while a further 13.2% reported that their children spent an average of 2 hours per day on learning activities.

Of respondents with children in junior cycle secondary, 8.3% indicated that their child spent 1 hour or less on learning activities, a smaller proportion than either senior cycle or transition year students. Of these respondents 22.1% reported that their child spent 2 hours per day on learning activities and a further 23.9% reported 3 hours per day.

Transition year students were reported, by their respondent parents or guardians, to have spent the least amount of time on learning activities provided by their school, with 44.4% reported as having spent 1 hour or less per day on learning activities and a further 38.3% reported as having spent 2 hours per day on learning activities provided by their school.