This report by RS Assessment analysed attainment tests among primary pupils in England for the Spring term of the 2021-2022 school year. It shows that Primary school children across England are still behind pre-pandemic levels for grammar, punctuation and spelling (GPS). They have however, caught up in reading and maths.
The data covers widely used tests for reading (New Progress in Reading Assessment (PiRA), maths (New Progress in Understanding Mathematics Assessment (PUMA), and grammar, punctuation, and spelling (Progress in Grammar, Punctuation and Spelling Assessment (GAPS).
A major concern during the pandemic has been that disadvantaged pupils may have been more badly affected than their peers.
The gap between those eligible for the Pupil Premium and their peers has reduced in GPS across some school years, but the gap is still wider than it was before the pandemic.
This gap has also reduced for reading across all year groups except Year 6, where it appears to have widened.