New polling by Public
First for the Centre for Policy Studies think tank shows that
over two thirds (67%) of parents think children in England have
been negatively affected by lockdown. A follow-up poll found that
57% of parents would support extending the school day by 30
minutes to give more time to catch up on academic subjects.
The areas which are considered to have suffered the most are
maths (62%), science subjects (41%) social skills (41%) and
writing (38%).
The focus groups for the project – carried out in Greater
Manchester and Outer London - revealed that parents were much
keener on any extra time in schools focusing on 'the basics'
rather than activities such as play, sport or drama.
The Government yesterday announced a further package of support
for tutoring, and is considering extending time spent in school
at the Comprehensive Spending Review in the autumn.
The polling found that such pro-academic policies had
overwhelming support from parents and the public. Of the options
tested, tutoring was by far the most popular, and evidence shows
it is the most effective - but it is also the most expensive.
The report notes that
parents are almost entirely unaware of the more than £1 billion
that the Government has already committed to tutoring, and
recommends a thorough overhaul of its communications strategy.
To ensure students of all ages are given the opportunity to catch
up with their studies, Public First and the CPS are proposing a
temporary short extension to the core school day, allowing for
more time to focus on the more academic subjects, alongside
dedicated tutoring for those who need it.
The polling finds that a majority of parents (57%) support a
longer school term and shorter school holidays as a measure to
help students catch up. A big majority of parents - 65% - support
free hours with private academic tutors. The evidence is that
these policies are all both popular and effective, and address
the most significant area of damage caused to children’s
education.
The findings also that parents say it is up to schools to make
sure children catch up, with 78% of parents saying they should be
primarily responsible.
On how to fund these measures, parents were much more likely to
say they were willing for their own taxes to go up to pay for
catch-up than the general population: the research finds that 42%
of parents are willing to pay more tax to fund efforts to help
children catch up at school, compared to only 36% of the English
general public.
Recognising that extending the school day would incur additional
ancillary costs (eg: transport, utilities, insurance, etc), the
think tanks are suggesting that the additional government funding
should be allowed to cover these costs. The report also
recommends making it clear that any extra spending would be
temporary and not result in a permanent increase in funding or
taxation.
Robert Colvile, CPS Director, said: 'Every
parent knows that children have suffered during lockdown. But our
polling and focus groups, as well as the available evidence, show
that it is the core academic subjects – in particular maths –
where the damage has been worst, and where efforts to repair the
damage must focus.
'Tutoring and a 30-minute extension to the school day,
focused on core academic subjects, would both be popular,
effective and well-targeted measures to help children catch up.
We urge the Government to act swiftly rather than pushing the
decision into the long grass.'
Public First conducted three polls – two of the general
population and an additional survey of over 1,000 parents – split
equally between secondary and primary. All three polls were
designed to be representative of the population of England. As
education is almost wholly devolved, polling was only carried out
in England. To go alongside the survey, focus groups were carried
out in Greater Manchester and Greater London with both secondary
and primary parents.
Notes to Editors
- ‘Lost Learning: How children can catch up after
Covid ’ is available here
- Report authors , Jonathan
Simons and Gabriel Milland were heavily involved in government
education policy under Conservative and Labour governments.
Data analysis and polling were provided by Ines Wittke and Seb
Wride.
