As the school year progresses, Indian parents are beginning to recognise the stress that the pandemic and online classes are causing their kids.
Nearly 80% of parents in India’s metros and smaller cities have said that they would not send their children to school this year, according to a survey published by edutainment company SP Robotic Works.
This response, collected from 3,600 parents and an equal number of students, differs with the income source of the family.
Among salaried professionals, 83% have said they wouldn’t send the kids to school until it is completely safe and the threat of Covid-19 is over.
This number significantly reduces with freelance workers and business owners. “The response from different cohorts is also rooted in their appetite for risk and the need to explore other avenues of income during these turbulent times,” the survey noted.
This is not to say that online classes are a favourite alternative to physical schools. Students and their parents have both strongly shown their preference for attending school in person.
“While we understand coping with online classes is the new normal for children, the response from students in the survey reinforces the importance and preference for healthy, conducive social environments that promote learning and development in children of all age groups,” child psychologist Vidya Ragu noted in the report.
The Indian government, though, has rejected the possibility of a “zero academic year”.
Students between the ages of seven years and 17 years are also stressed because of the looming threat of the pandemic.
This article first appeared on Quartz.