Reducing Educational Inequality After the COVID-19 Pandemic: What Do We Know, and What Research Do We Need?

Oct 15, 2026

Analyzes how educational inequality in the United States intensified after the COVID-19 pandemic, linking long-standing disparities to pandemic-driven disruptions and unequal access to schooling. Synthesizes research evidence on achievement declines, widening gaps by socioeconomic status and race/ethnicity, and reduced growth in high-poverty districts and younger grades. Also reviews research-backed response strategies—high-quality tutoring, expanded learning time, and stronger learner-educator relationships—while identifying priorities for further study to promote an equitable education system beyond 2020.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages18

Reading Time45 min

AccessFree to download

Reducing Educational Inequality and the COVID-19 Pandemic

Educational inequality before and during COVID-19

Evidence on achievement declines and widening gaps

Research-based strategies and remaining questions

Reducing Educational Inequality After the COVID-19 Pandemic: What Do We Know, and What Research Do We Need? Adam Gamoran William T. Grant Foundation Richard Murnane Harvard Graduate School of Education Reducing Educational Inequality After the COVID-19 Pandemic: What Do We Know, and What Research Do We Need? Adam Gamoran William T. Grant Foundation Richard Murnane Harvard Graduate School of Education Suggested Citation: Gamoran, A. & Murnane, R. (2023) . Reducing educational inequality after the COVID-19 pandemic: What do we know, and what research do we need? William T. Grant Foundation. WHEN PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA DECLARED in December 2013 that the stifling combination of growing inequality and lack of upward mobility constituted “the defining challenge of our time,” he pointed to education as a pathway to economic opportunity (Obama, 2013) . Nevertheless, the President acknowledged, education is a restricted avenue for important segments of our society. Compared to other nations, as well as to our own history, educational inequality in the U. S. remains exceptionally high (Gamoran, 2001, 2014). Indeed, the education system in the United States works well for some, but poorly for many others (Gamoran, 2001) . Whereas racial and ethnic differences in test scores have narrowed over the decades, differences by economic circumstances have ceded little ground, or have even grown in recent years (Reardon, 2011, 2021). Likewise, whereas racial and ethnic differences in high school completion and college enrollment rates among Black students and White students have diminished, differences in college completion rates have grown (Bailey & Dynarski, 2011; Papay et al., 2020). Atthe same time, modest differences in mental health outcomes by race and ethnicity have been swamped by large differences in access to mental health services, thereby disadvantaging those from Black, Indigenous, and immigrant communities (Alegría et al., 2015) . Educational inequality is thus a long-standing and persistent challenge. Indeed, when it comes to education in the U.S., inequality is not just the defining challenge of our time, but ofall time. Never has this inequality been more evident than during the COVID-19 era. The pandemic put existing divisions into sharp relief, and made them worse. Recent evidence tells a terrible story of the consequences of the pandemic—and the response of the education system to the pandemic—for educational inequality. Today, as the pandemic recedes, its effects are still with us, in education as well as in other domains. Fortunately, we have considerable knowledge about how to respond to growing inequality. As we explain below, we have learned through research that effective responses include high-quality tutoring, effective expanded learning time, and strengthened relationships between learners and educators. Yet many questions remain, and new research is needed to help ensure that our education system not only overcomes the increase in inequality induced by the pandemic, but reduces the inequality that was already in place prior to 2020. In this essay, we discuss the consequences of the pandemic for educational inequality, examine research-based strategies for responding to inequality, and identify new areas for research that can take us further down the road to an equitable education system. Educational inequality and the COVID-19 pandemic It was not hard to anticipate that achievement growth would be lower during the pandemic than it had been previously. Disruptions large and small, from natural disasters to switching schools, tend to depress achievement (Harris, 2020; Grigg, 2012). The COVID-19 pandemic caused massive disruptions to schooling, with many schools shutting down briefly before reopening in a virtual environment that was more accessible to some than others. In addition, the virus itself caused unprecedented disruptions for many families, particularly for the more tha

FAQs

Why does the document describe educational inequality as a persistent challenge in the U.S.?

It frames educational inequality as long-standing and persistent, noting that while some racial/ethnic differences narrowed, disparities linked to economic circumstances remained large or increased.

What kinds of COVID-19 disruptions are linked to worse educational outcomes?

The document highlights disruptions from school shutdowns and transitions to virtual learning, unequal accessibility, and broader family impacts such as loss of a parent or caregiver.

Which research-based strategies does the document say can respond to increasing inequality?

It identifies effective responses including high-quality tutoring, effective expanded learning time, and strengthened relationships between learners and educators.

Oct 15, 2026

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