VOA慢速英语2021 研究称在流感大流行期间，学生的进步放缓

Studies: Students’ Progress Slowed during the Pandemic

New research on national test scores suggests that students' learning greatly slowed down last year because of the pandemic. Minority and poorer students suffered the most.

Research published last week by the Center for Reinventing Public Education, or CRPE, argues there is major evidence that student progress in math and reading slowed by several months. The paper collected information from 12 different reports on student test scores during the pandemic. The CRPE study says that the average student is behind academically compared to students from previous years. The study points to school closures and remote learning as the main reasons behind the decline.

Robin¹ Lake is one of the authors of the study. She wrote in a tweet last week that a large number of American students "have learned very little in core subjects this year, failed classes at high rates, and been absent or missing from their schools." There is "little doubt that, on average, more in-person instruction produced more learning," she wrote.

Another study, released last month by the education research group NWEA, looked at end-of-year success relative to a normal school year. Looking at national test scores, NWEA found that students made progress in math and reading in the 2020-2021 school year, but that progress was much slower than in past years. Students especially struggled in math. NWEA found that students finished the 2020-2021 school year 8 to 12 percentile points lower than students in past years.

The findings come as the delta² variant³ of the coronavirus threatens school reopening plans. Educators and experts agree that in-person schooling⁴ should be a top concern. But more children, who are not able to get vaccinated⁵, are getting sick with the highly contagious⁶, and more dangerous, form of the virus. One-third of school districts in the country are not requiring masks this school year and another third have not made any decision on masks, says the publication Education Week.

Miguel Cardona is the head of the U.S. Department of Education. Speaking to reporters last week, he said he was worried about "adult actions getting in the way of schools safely reopening. Let our educators educate. Let our school leaders lead...Let's not go back to the school system of March 2020."

Exactly who was learning in-person at the beginning of 2021 varied⁷ greatly based on race. Federal data found that in January, 27 percent of white fourth graders were learning online. But 58 percent of Black students and 56 percent of Hispanic students were taking online classes.

That difference in in-person learning may have added to the widening of the achievement gap between mostly white and higher-income students, and mostly minority and lower-income students during the last school year.

"In math, students in majority Black schools ended the year with six months of unfinished learning, students in low-income schools with seven," said a study of student test scores by McKinsey released in July.

NWEA's research also showed that low-income and minority schools suffered the biggest drops in reading and math test scores. The pandemic "exacerbated⁹ pre-existing inequities in educational opportunities and outcomes," the study said.

"Many of the students who were lower already showed the biggest drops," said Megan Kuhfeld in an interview with Education Week. Kuhfeld is one of the authors of the NWEA study. "That's very alarming to me."

Education experts argue that more assistance is needed for low-income schools that were hurting long before the pandemic.

President Joe Biden's administration had proposed a $100 billion increase to improve school facilities as a part of his infrastructure¹⁰ plan. Little funding for schools, however, remains¹¹ in the $1 trillion bipartisan bill currently being debated in the U.S. Senate.

The CRPE study argues that the recent research shows the impact of the pandemic is short-term and that student learning can be improved upon. But Lake said a return to what was normal for many low-income schools may not be enough to prevent long-term declines in learning.

"The answer to the question, "How much will they suffer long term?" depends on adult action," Lake said in a tweet. "What we do from here matters."

Words in This Story

core — n. the most important or basic part of something

absent — adj. not present at a usual or expected place

doubt — n. a feeling of being uncertain or unsure about something

contagious — adj. able to be passed from one person or animal to another by touching¹²

achievement — n. something that has been done or achieved through effort : a result of hard work

income — n. money that is earned from work, investments, business, etc.

exacerbate⁸ — v. to make (a bad situation, a problem, etc.) worse

alarming — n. a feeling of fear caused by a sudden sense of danger

1 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

2 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

3 variant   

adj.不同的，变异的；n.变体，异体

参考例句：

• We give professional suggestions according to variant tanning stages for each customer.我们针对每位顾客不同的日晒阶段，提供强度适合的晒黑建议。
• In a variant of this approach,the tests are data- driven.这个方法的一个变种，是数据驱动的测试。

4 schooling   

n.教育；正规学校教育

参考例句：

• A child's access to schooling varies greatly from area to area.孩子获得学校教育的机会因地区不同而大相径庭。
• Backward children need a special kind of schooling.天赋差的孩子需要特殊的教育。

5 vaccinated   

[医]已接种的，种痘的，接种过疫菌的

参考例句：

• I was vaccinated against tetanus. 我接种了破伤风疫苗。
• Were you vaccinated against smallpox as a child? 你小时候打过天花疫苗吗？

6 contagious   

adj.传染性的，有感染力的

参考例句：

• It's a highly contagious infection.这种病极易传染。
• He's got a contagious laugh.他的笑富有感染力。

7 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。

8 exacerbate   

v.恶化，增剧，激怒，使加剧

参考例句：

• WMO says a warming climate can exacerbate air pollution.世界气象组织说，气候变暖可能会加剧空气污染。
• In fact efforts will merely exacerbate the current problem.实际上努力只会加剧当前的问题。

9 exacerbated   

v.使恶化，使加重( exacerbate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The symptoms may be exacerbated by certain drugs. 这些症状可能会因为某些药物而加重。
• The drugs they gave her only exacerbated the pain. 他们给她吃的药只是加重了她的痛楚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

11 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

12 touching   

adj.动人的，使人感伤的

参考例句：

• It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
• His letter was touching.他的信很感人。