An overwhelming majority of K-12 parents from across the country want to see a return to in-person schooling for their children.
Seventy-nine percent of K-12 parents believe students should return to the classroom, according to the results of a Gallup Poll released last week. Parents from across the spectrum agreed in-person instruction should return, with 82% of working parents voicing that view, 62% of Democrats, 80% of independents, and 94% of Republicans.
The poll comes as about 1 in 3 students in the United States still do not have the option to take classes in-person, raising concerns over student academic progress, psychological health, and social development.
The findings also come as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released updated guidance on how to return students to the classroom safely, which did not include vaccinating teachers as a prerequisite to opening school doors.
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The guidance clashes with many of the nation’s largest teachers unions, which have insisted that teachers receive vaccine priority before returning them to in-person instruction.
While Republicans and parents from the Northeastern region of the country were the most likely to support a return to in-person learning, the new poll showed wide support for the idea across ideological and geographic lines.
“The motivations behind support for in-person school can likely be traced, at least in part, to parents’ experiences over the past year,” Gallup said of the poll results. “Parents who identify as Republicans are the most likely of all groups to support in-person learning, which echoes the assertions of Donald Trump last year and other Republican lawmakers more recently. Republicans have also accused teachers’ unions of standing in the way of a return to classrooms.”
“Meanwhile, parents in the Northeast region of the U.S. have experienced more time with their children being out of school than those in the South and Midwest during the pandemic,” Gallup continued. “Parents in the West region are in a similar situation with fewer students in classrooms, but a notably smaller majority are supportive of in-person school (72%).”
President Biden has continued making a return to in-person schooling a priority in the early days of his administration, saying that classrooms should open within the first 100 days of his presidency.
The administration announced Wednesday that it is convening a summit next week in an attempt to help encourage a return to the classroom.
“We are holding this summit with the goal of sharing best practices and connecting leaders, educators and students from across this country who are navigating this challenge together and finding creative solutions to support our students and bring them back to in-person learning,” Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said of the summit.
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“The time is now, and schools must act immediately to get students safely back into school buildings,” Cardona said of the potential return to classrooms.
