In the UK (although the figure in other countries is likely to be similar) according to an article in the Telegraph, a survey by Sutton Trust (a social mobility charity) showed that only 59% of children in low-income households had access to a device for online learning. Similarly, 26% “of youngsters from disadvantaged households are completing five hours of schoolwork a day compared to 40 per cent of their middle-class peers”. As a result of this “lost learning” many middle-class parents are turning to private tutors, but clearly lower income families cannot afford this, putting them at a disadvantage to their peers. Children have recently been doing double the amount of homework compared to the spring lockdown: in fact 23% of primary pupils are doing more than five hours learning per day, which is up from 11%; secondary is at 45%, up from 19%, so a positive direction. But while this is so, a poll of more than 6,000 teachers by Teacher Tapp found that only 54% are using online live lessons: the only good thing is that this compares to just 4% in March 2020. These numbers all need to improve to continue to make learning happen and avoid the loss of an entire academic year.
