A RealClear Opinion Research
poll released Thursday
found 40 percent of families are more likely to choose to homeschool their
children or engage in virtual learning once the coronavirus pandemic subsides.
The survey asked
parents, “Are you more or less likely to enroll your son or daughter in a
homeschool, neighborhood homeschool co-op, or virtual school once the lockdowns
are over?”
Of the 626
parents who responded, 40.8 percent said they were “more likely” to do so,
while 31.1 percent replied they were “less likely.”
With political
party as a factor, 45.7 percent of parents who said they would be “more likely”
to homeschool identified as Democrat, while 42.3 percent identified as
Republican.
Among those
parents who said they were “more likely” to homeschool, 36.3 percent were
white, 50.4 percent were black, 38.2 percent were Hispanic, and 53.8 percent
were Asian.
NEW NATIONAL POLL:
40% of Families More Likely
to Homeschool After Lockdowns End #SchoolChoice#Homeschool #EducationFreedom https://t.co/o5AsKGulh4
— American Federation for
Children (@SchoolChoiceNow) May 14, 2020
The survey also
questioned 2,122 registered voters on the issue of whether parents should be
able to use tax dollars designated for education for the schooling of their
choice.
Among the
respondents, 64 percent said they support that idea, including 59 percent of
Democrats, 75.2 percent of Republicans, and 60.2 percent of Independents.
Of the parents
who said they support the concept of school choice, 64.4 percent were white,
67.6 percent were black, 63.4 percent were Hispanic, and 55.5 percent were
Asian.
Results of the
poll appeared on the website of the American Federation for Children (AFC),
which promotes school choice. U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos waschairwoman of
AFC prior to her nomination by President Donald Trump.
John Schilling,
president of AFC, said in
a statement:
Every
single family with kids in school has been incredibly disrupted by the
lockdowns. With 55 million students no longer in their normal educational
setting, families are clearly considering new options and many are seeing the
benefits of homeschooling and virtual schooling. Policymakers should note
that there is a strong desire to have these and other educational
options available to families, with both strong support for the general concept
of school choice and even stronger support for a specific federal proposal,
Education Freedom Scholarships.
Schilling added
many families are also seeing “the inadequacies of school districts that are
too inflexible.”
“Moreover,
policymakers owe it to the taxpayers who are footing the $800
billion K-12 education bill to maximize their investment by ensuring
every child has access to a quality education and outcomes are improved across
the board,” he said.
The poll was
conducted April 18-21 and has a +/- 2.31 percent margin of error.
