The Pandemic has affected kids and adults all over Virginia. Since students had to do online school instead of in school learning, it created an environment that made learning harder. As a result of the pandemic, college students are struggling in math.

According to Fox News, multiple college students are failing their math classes. At George Mason, fewer students are getting into calculus and are falling behind. Northern Virginia colleges are organizing a Boot Camp that allows students to catch up on math lessons that were missed during the pandemic. Maria Emelianenko, chair of George Mason’s math department, says that “we’re talking about college-level-precalculus and calculus classes, and students cannot even add one-half and one-third.” 

Students at George Mason haven’t had as much practice with their math skills. Professors at Mason are aware of the problem and are creating ways to help students to catch up. George Mason has many programs that allow students to receive the help they need. There’s a Bridge camp as well as a program of undergraduate learning assistance, where learning Assistants (LAs) help support students if they are struggling. A professor at George Mason does “adjusted time review in mathematics. It’s a specific type of review where I will give them problems from a previous class and give them a video lecture to go through.” 

A professor at George Mason concludes, “I think you lose a lot by not being able to talk to people… You can’t ask questions as easily… So I think that sort of social part of [virtual] learning is really hard.”