Andover School Survey: Most Parents Likely To Send Kids To School

ANDOVER, MA — Most Andover parents are likely to send their kids to school if schools reopen for in-person learning in the fall, according to survey results shared by the district Thursday.

The family survey, which received 1,394 responses, was released ahead of Thursday night's scheduled Andover School Committee meeting, where the committee will discuss plans. The survey was conducted June 10 to 19.

The district is required to submit three plans to the state, Friday: in-person, remote and hybrid learning models. District leaders said last week that they are prioritizing in-person learning, although at least some students would learn remotely in any scenario.

According to the survey, 4 percent of families are "not at all likely" to send their children to school. Three-quarters of families said they are "extremely" or "quite likely" to send their kids, while the remainder said "somewhat likely" or "unsure."

The survey found similar numbers for a hybrid model, but far fewer families said they would send their kids on the bus: less than half said they were "extremely" or "quite" likely to do so, while nearly a quarter said they are "not at all likely."

On the other hand, 37 percent of parents are either "extremely" or "quite" concerned about child care in case they do not or cannot send their children to school. Forty-one percent are "not at all concerned." The "extremely or quite concerned" number rises to half of families of pre-kindergarten and elementary school students.

The survey also asked about the experience of remote learning in the spring. Most parents said thy are comfortable helping their kids with remote learning tools, but they had net-negative views of their experiences with at-home learning: 30 percent agreed or strongly agreed that at-home learning was positive, while 43 percent disagreed or strongly disagreed. In particular, nearly half of families said their children are not motivated to do at-home learning assignments.

In another survey conducted May 27 to June 6, staff also expressed concerns about connecting with and supporting their students: Only 30 percent said they were "extremely" or "quite confident" that they are doing so.

Live video classes and Google Classroom and Meet were popular with all groups.

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.

This story has been updated to include the dates the surveys were conducted.