The impact of COVID-19 on education systems in the Commonwealth

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated and underlined existing educational inequalities through mass school and university closures, with learning opportunities and attainment affected by lockdowns, variable home-learning facilities, and changing assessment methods. The longterm impact of lost learning on young people is yet to be quantified. In many low-income countries there are signs that COVID-19 school closures could deepen inequality, in access to quality education and learning, especially for those in rural localities, of a lower socio-economic background and disadvantaged groups. This publication explores these and other issues including the intersections of the pandemic with poverty and gender. It highlights initiatives and provides possible solutions. The publication is organised in four sections: systemic response and education sector resilience; access, equity and inclusion; innovative solutions; and adaptation and well-being in challenging times and environments. It is the result of a collaboration to engage early career and senior researchers in the agility of rapid research on the impact of a health crisis on the education sector. It provides an insight to stakeholders on early interventions and mitigation strategies set in place some two months into the pandemic, with findings that were to be accentuated as the pandemic spread and reversed educational gains.