Parents want mix of in-person and remote tuition for children, survey finds

‘It’s like a Catch-22 – you want them back in the building, but at the same time, you want them safe’

Parents want their children to attend school both in-person and remotely amid the spread of the more contagious Delta variant, a survey has found.

The survey, conducted by Edge Research and HCM Strategists, sampled 1,448 parents with children in kindergarten to the 12th grade from 23 July to 8 August. This was around the same time the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidelines, saying vaccinated people should wear masks because of the Delta variant.

Before 27 July, 58 per cent of parents wanted their children to learn in person, year round. But that number dropped to 43 per cent following the CDC’s updated guidance.

"The survey and listening sessions demonstrate that parents are continuing to juggle multiple worries as their children are returning to school,” Anna King, president of National PTA, said in a statement.

The survey also found that white parents were more likely to prefer only in-person learning compared to Black and Hispanic parents.

“It’s like a Catch-22,” Kizzy Dogan, a mother in Washington, DC, told NBC. “You want them back in the building, but at the same time, you want them safe. You want them healthy. You want them home so if staying home is the best way, then I think we need to stay at home.”

The survey also found that 75 per cent of parents think wearing a mask is key to preventing Covid-19 spread. Nevertheless, some governors have issued a mask mandate for children while other governors are banning mask mandates.

When the school year started, thousands of students and teachers have had to quarantine across the country and some schools have even closed because of Covid-19 infections.