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Covid-19 and education: a study with undergraduate students

Author

Listed:
  • Thiago Christiano Silva

    (Universidade Católica de Brasília)

  • Tito Belchior Silva Moreira

    (Universidade Católica de Brasília)

  • Jeferson Trindade Santana

    (Universidade Católica de Brasília)

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic forced universities and schools worldwide to switch from in-person to online learning. This article analyzes the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on education, particularly on the academic performance of undergraduate students in Brazil. The sudden shift from face-to-face to online learning, caused by government measures to contain the spread of the virus, provided an opportunity to investigate the effects of this change on academic outcomes. Using a difference-in-differences methodology and a unique and granular dataset, we find that the transition negatively affected students’ academic performance, increasing the course failure rates. We also investigate the heterogeneous effects of the abrupt change across student subgroups and find that older students adapted more quickly than younger students, while the change disproportionately affected female students and those with lower academic skills. The study emphasizes the need for targeted interventions to support groups that struggled more with the shift to ensure all students have an equal opportunity to succeed in the new online environment.

Suggested Citation

  • Thiago Christiano Silva & Tito Belchior Silva Moreira & Jeferson Trindade Santana, 2024. "Covid-19 and education: a study with undergraduate students," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 66(2), pages 763-784, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:empeco:v:66:y:2024:i:2:d:10.1007_s00181-023-02469-9
    DOI: 10.1007/s00181-023-02469-9
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Ruohao Zhang, 2022. "Economic impact payment, human mobility and COVID-19 mitigation in the USA," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 62(6), pages 3041-3060, June.
    2. Pål Schøne & Kristine von Simson & Marte Strøm, 2020. "Peer gender and educational choices," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 59(4), pages 1763-1797, October.
    3. Carolien Christ & Marleen M de Waal & Jack J M Dekker & Iris van Kuijk & Digna J F van Schaik & Martijn J Kikkert & Anna E Goudriaan & Aartjan T F Beekman & Terri L Messman-Moore, 2019. "Linking childhood emotional abuse and depressive symptoms: The role of emotion dysregulation and interpersonal problems," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 14(2), pages 1-18, February.
    4. Joana Elisa Maldonado & Kristof De Witte & Koen Declercq, 2022. "The effects of parental involvement in homework: two randomised controlled trials in financial education," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 62(3), pages 1439-1464, March.
    5. Badr K. Aldhmadi & Rakesh Kumar & Ramaiah Itumalla & Bilesha Perera, 2021. "Depressive Symptomatology and Practice of Safety Measures among Undergraduate Students during COVID-19: Impact of Gender," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-9, May.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    COVID-19; Academic performance; Classroom; Distance; Online; Higher education;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • A22 - General Economics and Teaching - - Economic Education and Teaching of Economics - - - Undergraduate
    • C01 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - General - - - Econometrics
    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes

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