Students’ Mathematics Achievements: A Comparison between Pre- and Post-COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic represented a shift from face-to-face to online and distance learning. Teaching methods and assessing strategies changed, as well as grading standards. The focus of this paper is to address the differences between pre- and post-COVID-19 pandemic mathematics grades and, in particular, to investigate the possible differences between mid-term and end-term grades in Italy. To this end, 231 Italian middle and high school students’ grades were analysed. Using the Wilcoxon rank test (a non-parametric statistical test) the results showed a statistically significant difference in pre- and post-COVID-19 quarantine grades. End-of-year grades were higher than those before the COVID-19 confinement. Furthermore, the results indicated that more than half of the students in the sample achieved a higher grade at the end of the school year. Gender differences in mathematics grades were examined, since the literature about gender gap in mathematics achievement is not coherent about whether boys outperform girls or vice versa. Statistically significant differences at the end of the first semester were reported, in favour of female students although gender differences were not detected at the end of the school year. The findings suggest that greater caution should be paid in interpreting students’ grades pre- and post-COVID-19 confinement, since it cannot be excluded that such students’ achievements are inflated. Excessively high students’ grades that do not represent their actual knowledge and competencies could give educators and legislators misleading and even false information about the quality of distance learning and students’ knowledge.