The ICICLES study, funded by the Nuffield Foundation, was initiated while Professor Bower-Crane was at The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR). The study tracked children’s language, socioemotional, and educational progress for three years following the initial lockdowns. While many children displayed remarkable personal resilience, national data suggests a troubling ‘lost ground’ in core academic skills, particularly writing.
The findings present a tale of different data sets. On the one hand, teacher reports and sample groups showed that many children’s language and emotional skills remained within expected ranges. But, the National Pupil Database paints a starker picture of the pandemic's academic toll.
Key Academic Impacts (Age 5 - 7):
- The Writing Crisis: Writing was the hardest-hit subject at age seven, seeing a 10 percentage point drop in pupils meeting expected standards.
- The Attendance Factor: Children with lower school attendance and those who missed out on free nursery placements suffered the most significant developmental setbacks.
- Demographic Shifts: While achievement gaps widened for socio-economically disadvantaged groups, some gaps narrowed for unusual reasons. The ‘gender gap’ shrank not because boys improved, but because girls experienced a more severe decline in achievement than their male peers.
The research didn't just look at the students. It highlighted a ‘burnout’ crisis among school staff. Teachers and headteachers reported immense strain, citing increased workloads and the emotional weight of supporting families through the crisis.
The report findings warn that the education sector's resilience depends heavily on the well-being of its workforce, calling for funded counselling and supervision for staff.
The report moves beyond diagnosis, offering a specific ‘prescription’ for the UK education system. Key recommendations include:
- Intensive Writing Support: Specifically targeting fine motor skills (handwriting) and composition for Key Stage 1.
- Specialist Access: Boosting the ‘team around the school’ (educational psychologists and speech therapists) to intervene before children fall too far behind.
- Targeted Funding: Moving away from one size fits all solutions to support the most vulnerable, including those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND).
- Family Liaison: Using dedicated officers to improve attendance and reconnect families with the school community.
The study suggests that while the long-term impact on personality and social skills may not be as catastrophic as first feared, the academic ‘scarring’ in literacy is real and persistent. Without sustained investment in specialised interventions , the gap created during the lockdown years may become a permanent fixture of this generation's education.
Professor Bowyer-Crane said, “Cautious optimism is the key here. While the data shows progress, vulnerable children are still slipping through the cracks. We need to back our schools with real investment so that children are not left behind and teachers are not left struggling.”
Eleanor Ireland, Education Programme Head at the Nuffield Foundation said: “These findings highlight the multitude of experiences and longer-term effects of the pandemic on children and the teaching workforce. The report provides practical recommendations to strengthen early learning and calls for resources to be focused on children who need the most support to ensure disadvantage gaps aren’t allowed to persist.”
You can read the report here Home | ICICLES
