> which puts them at the same level as their global peers who went through the same thing. I don't think the problem has anything to do with country vs country

> which puts them at the same level as their global peers who went through the same thing. I don't think the problem has anything to do with country vs country loss or competition. It's about children simply losing out on essential education and development, which makes life a bigger struggle going forward. It's especially important for young children, where language and fundamental math acquisition are incredibly important and harder to establish as they age. It's easy to teach someone calculus if they've had exposure to math since they were 5. It's hard to teach someone algebra if they weren't sitting down with an actual teacher and learning basic arithmetic until 3rd grade. Early math is a hands-on thing and parents often aren't good at teaching it (many being math-phobes themselves). And that's not even getting into a lack of face-to-face interaction with peers among young kids. I have to wonder if social anxiety and similar issues will be more common among kids who went through strict covid lockdowns.