Speaker: Professor Wei-Jun Jean Yeung
Provost-Chair Professor in the Department of Sociology and School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore (NUS)

Abstract: This study uses data (ages 3 to 8, N=2,595, 51% boy, 67% Chinese) from the Singapore Longitudinal Early Development Study collected before and during the pandemic to examine how the COVID-19 pandemic affects young children’s cognitive development across different socioeconomic backgrounds. Results show that the pandemic exacerbated existing inequality in a myriad of resources for children’s learning exerting a “COVID-19 learning gap effect”. The achievement gap between the two opposite socioeconomic spectrums widened during the pandemic. The more disadvantaged families experienced greater housing stress, food insecurity, and financial strains. During the pandemic, parents in these households provided less cognitively-stimulating materials and guidance in learning and set fewer boundaries for children. Their children spent less time learning and more time on electronic devices.
Policy implications are discussed.