Gallup Poll: Nearly 8 in 10 Parents Favor In-Person Learning

Seventy-nine percent of K-12 parents support in-person schooling during the pandemic, according to a new Gallup poll.

Here are how the poll results, released Thursday, break down:

• 94% of parents who are Republicans favor in-person learning, while 6% do not.
• 62% of parents who are Democrats support in-person schooling, compared to 38% who do not.
• 80% of parents who are independents favor in-person learning, while 20% do not.
• 82% of parents who work support in-person schooling, compared to 18% who do not.
• 71% of parent who are not working favor in-person learning, while 29% do not.
• 90% of parents in the Northeast support in-person schooling, compared to 10% who do not.
• 83% of parents in the Midwest favor in-person learning, while 17% do not.
• 78% of parents in the South support in-person schooling, compared to 22% who do not.
• 72% of parents in the West favor in-person learning, while 28% do not.
• 13% of working parents say they reduced their work hours to help children with at-home learning.
• 7% of parents have either quit or taken leaves from their jobs to help children with at-home learning.

The poll, conducted Feb. 14-21, surveyed 860 adults. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 5 percentage points.

Earlier this month, President Joe Biden urged all states to prioritize teachers for COVID-19 vaccinations, The Hill noted.

"Our goal is to do everything we can to help every educator receive a shot this month, the month of March," Biden said in remarks from the White House. 

"We can reopen schools if the right steps are taken even before employees are vaccinated, but time and again, we've heard from educators and parents that have anxieties about that," Biden said. "So as yet another move to help accelerate the safe reopening of our schools, let's treat in-person learning like an essential service that it is."

Vice President Kamala Harris has also said the nation's teachers should be "a priority" for getting COVID-19 vaccinations

"[Teachers] are critical to our children's development," Harris said. "They should be able to teach in a safe place and expand the minds and the opportunities of our children. So teachers should be a priority along with other frontline workers."

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has already issued guidance saying teachers do not need to be vaccinated before returning to in-person classrooms. 

And The Hill also noted that Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said earlier this month that ensuring that teachers are vaccinated in an effort to reopen schools is his "top priority."

"We must continue to reopen America’s schools for in-person learning as quickly and as safely as possible," Cardona said while touring a Connecticut school.

• Teachers Don't Need Vaccines to Open Schools, CDC Chief Says
• Fauci: 'Non-workable' for All Teachers Get Vaccine to Open Schools