In the spring of 2020, as the Coronavirus pandemic took hold, America’s schools sent the kids home. Over the following weeks, home schooling and distance learning became realities for millions of children.
A new study finds the sudden onset of new educational procedures shook up the online media habits inside many homes. Data shows that the need to teach kids and keep them occupied swept aside former rules regulating screen time and social media usage.
Parents who previously limited their kids' social media screen time before the Coronavirus pandemic ... [+]
The report originates from high-tech learning tools company Pearson and the online Connections Academy. It shows 77% of parents said they enforced household rules about screen time and the use of technology as of February 2020. Two months later, after COVID-19 changed homes into schools and work places in the wake of social distancing guidelines, 76% of those surveyed reported they suspended those rules. Screen time limits were stretched and restrictions on the use of social media or online entertainment were suspended.
The K-12 US Parent Pulse Report was designed to explore parental attitudes toward education and to understand how perceptions on distance learning and technology use shifted since the pandemic took hold.
Its other results, the survey reported 81% of parents say the benefits of online learning now outweigh concerns over screen time and the related restrictions for activities like social media. That number was 70% before COVID-19 hit in March 2020. Meanwhile, 84% of those surveyed say technology is helping their children to be more self-sufficient, a slight increase from 80% recorded in February.
A new study reveals that parents are trusting their children to stick with their studies and away ... [+]
Finally, only 57% of parents believe their kids are busy using social media as a distraction from their school work. It leaves the analyst to wonder if mom and dad really are that optimistic, or if they really don’t have much choice but to leave the screens running.
The study also makes clear how anxious many parents feel about how the Coronavirus lockdown and subsequent changes to education effect their children. In April, 89% of parents indicated schools should do more in future to teach virtual skills such as time management and critical thinking. A full 83% believe today’s school children face more serious challenges than their parents did at the same age.
