School disruption caused by the coronavirus pandemic is fueling anxiety in the majority (59%) of parents who are concerned that their child will fall behind in their education, even while only 44% of adults with school-age children They are willing to send their children to school, a new ABC News / Ipsos poll released on Friday finds.
The majority of all American adults (55%) are against the public schools in their community reopening with in-school instruction in the fall. Nearly four in 10 parents are not concerned about their children’s educational gains from COVID-19.
The new survey, conducted by Ipsos in association with ABC News using the Ipsos Knowledge Panel, comes as schools land at the center of the fight to reopen the country.
President Trump, who acknowledged during his first coronavirus briefing in nearly three months the severity of the virus and said it “will unfortunately likely get worse before it gets better,” continues to push for schools to restart instruction in person, and said Wednesday. . , “I would like to see the schools open.”
Trump even said he would feel “comfortable” sending his own son and grandchildren back to school on Wednesday, when ABC News White House chief correspondent Jonathan Karl.
On Thursday, after the poll was off the field, Trump began to stray from his hard line in reopening schools, saying the decision should rest on the shoulders of the nation’s governors.
“In cities or states that are current hot spots, and you will see that on the map behind me, districts may need to delay reopening for a few weeks, and that is possible,” he said. “That will depend on the governors. The decision must be made based on data and facts in each community, but each district must be making preparations to open.”
Trump’s insistence on reopening schools faced headwinds as the pandemic continues, with the United States surpassing 4 million cases of the virus on Thursday, a milestone that came just two weeks after the country it reached 3 million cases, a sign of an even greater increase. faster spread of the virus than in the spring.
Across the country, the resurgence of cases has forced 12 states and Puerto Rico to backtrack on the reopening process, while 13 states have halted or delayed their plans, according to an analysis by ABC News.
The president’s initial stance on reopening schools is backed by most members of his own party, with 79% of Republicans supporting the reopening of schools with in-person teaching in the fall. Only about one in five Democrats, and 40% of independents say the same.
Meanwhile, schools across the country are preparing and launching plans for the school year amid a pandemic. But as COVID-19 forced schools to abruptly switch to remote learning, concerns about students being left behind break party lines, and the poll found no significant difference between Democrats, Republicans, and independents.
The debate over when to reopen schools also comes as teachers and parents across the country continue to voice concerns about the risks of returning to the classroom, and anxiety across the country remains high. More than three-quarters of Americans (77%) are concerned about contracting the coronavirus, which follows levels in late June and May.
Concern among Republicans dropped 15 points since the last time the question was asked in late June, but there was a slight rebound among Democrats (99%) and independents (79%) in that poll, when 91% of Democrats and 73% of independents were concerned.
Overall, the country is still reluctant to return to normal, and Americans show apprehensive levels similar to June when it comes to participating in a variety of activities.
Among the activities that most are willing to do, eating in a restaurant (54%), staying in a hotel (51%), and going to work (78%) are slightly lower since the ABC News / Ipsos survey published in June 12. But shopping (94%), cutting hair (67%), attending church (51%) and going to a mall (51%) remain stable.
Few Americans, however, are willing to go to a bar (27%), attend a sporting event (22%), go to the gym (28%), go to the movies (27%), go bowling (31 %), fly in a plane (33%) or attend a protest (17%).
The politicization of the country’s reopening is reflected in the new poll, with Republicans showing a much greater willingness than Democrats to carry out almost all activities. The only activity Democrats are more willing to do is attend a protest.
This set of questions has been asked four times since ABC News / Ipsos began probing for the coronavirus in March, and on all four, Democrats, for the most part, continually have a higher level of concern compared to Republicans about the return to everyday life.
This ABC News / Ipsos survey was conducted by the Ipsos Public Affairs KnowledgePanel® from July 22 to 23, 2020, in English and Spanish, among a random national sample of 543 adults. The results have a sampling error margin of 4.9 points, including the design effect. See the survey results and details about the methodology here.
.
