COVID-19 Impact: Math Proficiency Among 9th Graders Hits Record Low

It has been found that one in every six to seven middle school third-grade students has a very low level of proficiency in mathematics.

The proportion of 9th graders who fell into the lowest proficiency level, 'Level 1,' stood at 14.9%.

This is analyzed to be a result of significant "learning deficits" caused by the COVID-19 pandemic between 2020 and 2022, when these students were in the upper grades of elementary school.

The Ministry of Education and the Korea Institute for Curriculum and Evaluation announced these findings in the "2025 National Assessment of Educational Achievement Results."

This assessment is conducted annually to systematically analyze the current status and trends in students' academic achievement levels.

Approximately 3% of all middle school third-grade and high school second-grade students are sampled to evaluate their academic achievement in Korean, mathematics, and English across four levels.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.