Learning Loss or Learning Gain? A Potential Silver Lining to School Closures in Indonesia

Abstract

Indonesian students have lagged behind their global peers since before the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the risk of significant loss and permanence of the phenomenon in low- and middle-income countries, along with the particularly lengthy period of school closure in Indonesia, this paper aims to give an insight into the discussion on student learning progress during school closures. We will present the impact of the closures on primary school students’ achievement in Bukittinggi, the third-largest city on the island of Sumatra and a highly urbanised area. The city has consistently performed well in most education-related measures due to a strong cultural emphasis on education and a supportive government (Nihayah et al., 2020), but has been significantly affected during the pandemic as most students are confined to their homes with very limited teacher-student interaction.