High school has always been hellish, at least for some of us. But in the two-plus years since COVID-19 hit, students have also had to deal with the isolating and confusing effects of an abruptly remote education. The Pew Research Center surveyed 1,316 teenage students plus one of their parents in April and May of this year to learn how the pandemic affected their education and relationships.
One key finding: A large majority of teens—65%—prefer in-person education, while just 9% would like school to be completely virtual, and 18% would prefer a hybrid live-virtual classroom. Their parents skewed slightly more positively about remote learning: 39% were “extremely or very satisfied with the way their child’s school has handled virtual learning.”
Most teens, however—62%—were sure that remote learning hadn’t caused them to fall behind academically. Parents were less sanguine, at just 48%. And some teen students did express concern: 16% said they were “extremely or very worried” about having fallen behind in school thanks to COVID.
Also revealed by the survey: The digital divide persists, and the pandemic certainly did not help. Twenty-two percent of teen respondents told Pew they often or sometimes have to do homework on a phone. And 12% have had difficulty finishing homework because they lack computer or internet access. Of those with no home internet, 6% have had to use public Wi-Fi for homework.
Find out more about the current state of remote learning for teens at Pew's website.