ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the structure and governance of the compulsory education system in England. It uses the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) tests to examine the evolution of students’ academic performance before and after the pandemic. The analysis reports changes in three subjects: mathematics, reading, and sciences. Overall, the performance in these subjects has decreased by 0.081, 0.044, and 0.1597 standard deviations, respectively. A more nuanced investigation reveals that the pandemic had different effects on boys and girls in different subjects. Relatively disadvantaged students experienced more significant drops in their academic performance, and the gap between the most and least disadvantaged students widened, particularly in mathematics and science. The non-cognitive effects of the pandemic on school students, encompassing emotions, behaviour, social development, and mental well-being, are discussed. The analysis also compares the findings with existing literature and proposes directions for further research to better understand the impact of the pandemic on both tangible academic performance and intangible well-being measures, such as mental health.
