How the economy will be impacted by school closures due to corona virus

This article is written by the BBC and it discusses the large implications that school closures could have in the years to come. The article starts off by explaining the effects of the school closures. According to research from Cambridge University and Bristol University, children’s lack of learning will lead to a significant negative impact on the skills of the future workforce. Economically, this lack of development could cost billions of pounds in reduced growth rate in the coming decades.

The article then states that the study from Cambridge and Bristol University says there is a clear link between education and earnings, therefore further providing evidence that this lack of education will have a negative economic impact in the future. The study predicts a 3% loss in annual earnings for pupils caught up in school closures and that there will be some sort of effect for all years of school, lasting until the 2080s. The article shows that this outcome is possible by stating that in Argentina, due to reduced schooling, there was a 3.2% annual earning reduction for men and a 1.9% annual earning reduction for women. The article then quotes the study that says around a quarter of the future workforce will have a lower skills due to this pandemic.

Finally, the article quotes Simon Burgess, an economics professor at Bristol University, saying that reducing transmission of the virus is the priority, but children being put back in schools is still a must. It then cites Anna Vignoles, an education professor at Cambridge University, saying that the more financially disadvantaged children who aren’t getting good remote learning due to lack of space and equipment will be the ones suffering the most from the effects of school closures like reduced GDP growth and annual earnings.