With approximately one billion children out of school for a significant amount of time, the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened pre-existing learning crises in many parts of the world. Extended periods of school lockdowns are likely to widen educational attainment gaps, especially in low and middle income countries where remote learning facilities are not widely available.

Effective policy response to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the education sector will have to take the evolution of the school closures into account.  This interactive map charts time-series data on the evolution of school closures at the national level. The data was compiled by UNESCO as part of its effort to monitor sectoral impact and policy responses in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.