No. 794 - Hidden drop-outs: secondary education (unseen) failure in pandemic times

by Lorenzo Alderighi, Rosario Maria Ballatore and Marco Tonello
September 2023
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We estimate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on hidden drop-outs, a new indicator of school failure that measures the likelihood that students do not acquire adequate skills by the end of high school, despite having formally completed school and having obtained a diploma.

Looking at students with the same characteristics (such as existing skills), hidden drop-outs increased by 8.6 percentage points in the school year 2020-21 compared with 2018-19, roughly 50 per cent higher than the indicator for the same year. This translates into a loss of about one year of learning progress. The pandemic has severely affected students with pre-existing learning difficulties and those coming from poorer socio-economic backgrounds.

Forthcoming in: Journal of Human Capital.

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  1. 25 September 2023
    No. 794 - Hidden drop-outs: secondary education (unseen) failure in pandemic times
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