A large percentage of parents are tossing their support behind getting their children back into the classrooms amid the coronavirus pandemic.
As the country hits the one-year mark of COVID-19 lockdown, in the U.S., one in three K-12 students does not have the choice for in-person schooling, according to Gallup.
Many parents worry about “damage to their children’s academic progress, psychological health and social development” with no in-person learning, Gallup reports.
Gallup found that 79% of parents of K-12 students in the U.S. support providing in-person learning “right now.” Among those polled, 82% of working parents favored in-person schooling while 71% of non-working parents also supported getting their child back in the classroom.
Ninety-four percent of those who responded to the question identify as a Republican and 80% polled identify as a Democrat. The poll, published Thursday, was conducted from Feb. 14-21.
Additionally, 13% of the parents polled said they had to reduce their hours of work to help their child with at-home learning. Seven percent say they had to quit their job to help their child with the schooling while at home.
U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky said in early February, “Schools should be the last places closed and the first places opened.”
The CDC issued guidance about reopening schools for in-person learning.
“The many benefits of in-person schooling should be weighed against the risks of spreading COVID-19 in the school and community,” the CDC website reads.
Citing guidelines by the CDC, The New York Times reported on March 2, “Only 4 percent of the nation’s schoolchildren live in counties where coronavirus transmission is low enough for full-time in-person learning without additional restrictions.”
President Joe Biden has indicated that he believes teachers should be prioritized for the COVID-19 vaccine.
“My challenge to all states, territories and the District of Columbia is this: We want every educator, school staff member, child care worker to receive at least one shot by the end of the month of March,” Biden said on March 2.
He added, “Our goal is to do everything we can to help every educator receive a shot this month, the month of March.”
The president also suggested that there are “anxieties” among educators and parents about reopening schools before the staff is vaccinated, “So as yet another move to help accelerate the safe reopening of our schools, let’s treat in-person learning like an essential service that it is.”