Oecd covid survey eag indd

Lower secondary education
Source: 
OECD/UIS/UNESCO/UNICEF/WB (2021
[1]
).

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© OECD 2021 
31
The State of Global Education: 18 Months into the Pandemic
In addition to the factors influencing teachers’ salary 
cost, many countries, such as the Czech Republic, 
France, Hungary, New Zealand, Poland and Portugal, 
devoted significant additional funding to the purchase 
of digital equipment to support the transition to remote 
learning, or to provide the sanitary and hygiene 
conditions for safe school reopening. For example, 
in New Zealand, a USD 62 million emergency 
funding package was announced to support the 
development of the distance learning programme until 
the end of June 2020, including digital enablement 
and capability building. This response was focused 
on ensuring underprivileged students had access to 
opportunities to learn from home. In the United States, 
59% of adults with children below the age of 18 
enrolled in a public or private primary and secondary 
school reported that computers were provided by the 
children’s school or school district (US Department of 
Commerce, Bureau of the Census, 2021
[19]
). Funds 
were also directed to ensure remedial measures to 
address learning loss. For example, Sweden increased 
the earmarked government grant directed to schools 
that provided education during holidays in 2020 
(“Statsbidrag för lovskola 2020”), while in Finland, 
remedial measures were targeted to disadvantaged 
pupils, such as those with special education needs 
or an immigrant background. Other targeted areas 
included student and teacher well-being in Denmark 
and New Zealand. At tertiary level, some countries 
targeted funding to support economic recovery 
programmes through adult education. 
Specific financial support measures for tertiary education
Tertiary education is key for students’ career and 
personal development. It also plays a key role in 
lifelong learning, providing adults with opportunities 
to reskill and upskill throughout their professional life. 
A failure to sustain effective tertiary systems can lead 
to inequalities, as youth or older adults may face 
difficulties in engaging in learning, particularly as 
they become older, endangering their education and 
employment prospects in the process. Economies have 
been confronted with a massive challenge of how to 
support tertiary education to keep students’ education 
and, more generally, social cohesion on track. 
The economic crisis brought on by the spread of 
COVID-19 has affected the most vulnerable the 
most, as unemployment rose and specific sectors of 
activity relating to tourism, services and entertainment 
were the most strongly hit. Funding efforts towards 
tertiary education in some countries have focused on 
enabling access to higher education programmes 
to support economic recovery programmes through 
education. For example, higher education institutions 
in Sweden received increased funding from the state 
to finance short courses for lifelong learning and 
programmes leading to professions where there is a 
shortage of labour. Similarly, in Finland and Norway, 
tertiary institutions received additional funds to support 
increased entry places for students in response to job 
loss or unemployment during the pandemic.
Ensuring strong public financial support to students,