PHNOM PENH: The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MoEYS) and UNICEF Cambodia have released a technical national learning assessment report, which reports alarming findings on the learning loss experienced by Cambodian students due to the school closures caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The MoEYS and UNICEF Cambodia published the findings from a Grade Six National Learning Assessment Report, on Tuesday, 5 April. The study for the report compares data from the 2016 and 2021 national learning assessments conducted by the MoEYS. The data for the 2021 national learning assessment was collected in November 2021, with the support of UNICEF and other Capacity Development Partnership Fund (CDPF) partners, and the results of the analysis were first released in March 2022.

More than 6,000 students across 230 schools in Cambodia were found to have fallen behind in their learning during the pandemic, according to the Education Quality Assurance Department (EQAD) of the MoEYS. In particular, comparing data from 2016’s national learning assessment, the percentage of students who failed to demonstrate basic proficiency in the Khmer language rose from 34 to 45 percent, and the subject of Mathematics showed even worse results, with failures increasing from 49 to 74 percent. The considerably worse results in Mathematics compared to the Khmer language likely reflects the fact that the subject often requires more in-person attention and support, which was difficult to ensure during the school closures.

During the 2020-2021 period, schools were closed for 250 days, which is the equivalent of almost two-thirds of the two school years. The report also reveals that although all students experienced learning loss from the school closures, the impact was not evenly distributed. Boys were found to have lost more learning and performed worse in testing compared to girls (55% of boys were assessed as not meeting basic proficiency in the Khmer language in 2021, compared to 34% of girls).

The Minister of Education, Youth and Sports, Hang Chuon Naron, has noted that, "These are worrying results.” He further stated, "We worked hard with all our partners to put in place remote learning measures for students when schools were closed during the pandemic. The studies have shown that these did help to maintain learning for many, but the Learning Assessment results confirm that these activities simply couldn't be enough to compensate for all that is lost by children when they are not learning in a classroom. It's now time for us all to try and help Cambodian children catch up with the learning they have lost, a process that has begun but must now be accelerated with the support of every partner in the education sector."

According to a press release from UNICEF, the MoEYS hosted a Joint Technical Working Group Meeting with all of its education partners in response to the grim findings of the report, in order to devise and plan a way forward. It was acknowledged that the Ministry had already taken some crucial steps, such as mandating remedial lessons, as soon as schools reopened, but the Working Group agreed that these needed to be expanded and strengthened to help students catch up, with increased targeting at the most disadvantaged students who suffered the greatest learning loss.

The UNICEF Representative in Cambodia, Foroogh Foyouzat, has said, "Globally, learning loss is perceived as one of the most damaging consequences of the pandemic, but Cambodia is one of the few countries that have proved its extent with hard data.” He acknowledged the important steps taken by the MoEYS to bring forth this evidence which can guide the required policy and action needed to reverse this trend.

The full report and summary of findings can be found and read here: https://www.unicef.org/cambodia/press-releases/new-research-confirms-cambodian-children-experienced-extensive-learning-loss-during