Commenting on the release of KS2 attainment statistics for 2022, Jon Andrews, Head of Analysis at the Education Policy Institute, said:
“Whilst results in reading are encouraging, our own EPI analysis of learning loss through the pandemic has consistently shown greater losses in mathematics and this is reflected in today’s results. With the exception of reading, scores have declined markedly across Key Stage 2 tests, and the pandemic related learning losses are confirmed for the first time in nationally held tests.
“What we cannot see from today’s publication is how the pandemic has affected different pupil groups and different parts of the country. By the start of this school year, our analysis of school assessment data showed that pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds had fallen further behind their peers and that overall learning losses were greatest in the north and parts of the midlands.
“Today’s results suggest that there may still be much work to do to support schools in delivering an education recovery for all pupils and all parts of the country. This challenge will become greater if rising inflation squeezes school budgets.”
