Learning loss in Cambodia and the use of EdTech during COVID-19

This report estimates the effects of COVID-19 on learning and earnings in Cambodia, analyzes the country’s education technology (EdTech) readiness and the extent to which EdTech access and use are correlated with learning, and discusses the policy implications of the study findings for enhancing learning and improving system resilience through EdTech-based teaching and learning. More specifically, it first analyzes the state of learning outcomes in Cambodia in the immediate post-COVID period (November 2021) using the government’s national learning assessment (NLA) data for grade 6 students and estimates the decline in learning outcomes experienced by these students between 2016 and 2021 in Khmer and mathematics. Additionally, using a learning loss simulation model developed at the World Bank, it also estimates losses in learning-adjusted years of schooling (LAYS) and future earnings of students resulting from the pandemic. Second, it analyzes the relationship between the EdTech-based distance learning measures implemented at the school level and learning outcomes as well as the extent to which the country is prepared to systematically integrate and expand the use of EdTech in the education system. Third, it provides recommendations for enhancing learning recovery and learning outcomes and addressing gaps in policy provision and implementation to support the scaling-up of EdTech for improving system resilience.