MASS EXODUS: Poll Shows 2 Million Students Have Left Public Schools

Bo Banks | Aug 22, 2022



During the COVID-19 pandemic, American public schools instituted virtual instruction so that students could learn from home.
Parents weren’t so pleased with what they saw.

One of the biggest concerns moms and dads had was how parental rights or opinions were being ignored. So some parents sought to attend school board meetings to display their frustrations. While others ditched the public school system entirely.
With the start of the 2022-2023 school year, nearly 2 million students have left public schools and are now receiving their education elsewhere.



Corey A. DeAngelis
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mass exodus.



8:22 AM · Aug 19, 2022

From The Hill:
Last spring, district school enrollment bounced back up to 77 percent and enrollment has hovered at that rate since then…


… That percentage drop means that almost 2 million students have left a traditional public school for either a charter or private school or to be homeschooled.
2 million less students is a lot. Especially when you consider how much taxpayer money the public school system is missing out on because of this mass exodus.
Parents are clearly understanding that their kids may be better off in a private school. With some leaning back on homeschooling as their alternative of choice for their child’s education.
The numbers from the article by The Hill used polling from Education Next. And found that the “decline could stem from parents choosing to remove their children from district schools to charter or private schools.”
Furthermore: “More children appear to be taking their course work at home.”
Another big reason for this shift in where kids are being educated comes from the massive influx of social justice issues that are plaguing American school systems.

For example, in an article from mid-July, Big League Politics reported on a poll from Gallup that showed only 28% of Americans had a “great deal/quite a lot” of confidence in U.S. public schools in 2022.
“Americans’ confidence in U.S. public schools remains low, with 28% saying they have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in the institution, similar to 32% last year,” Gallup reported.

“Both figures are down from 41% in 2020, reflecting a brief surge in the early months of the pandemic after registering 29% in 2019,” the outlet continued.
Interestingly, the poll even highlighted the stark contrast between Republican confidence in public schools to that of Democrats. With 14% and 43% having a “great deal/quite a lot” of confidence in public schools respectively.
A whopping 50% of Republicans said that they have “very little/no” confidence in public schools. While only 16% of Democrats shared the same answer.
“While all political party groups expressed more confidence than usual in public schools in 2020, Republicans’ confidence has since plunged, while independents’ has dipped and Democrats’ has remained near their pandemic high,” Gallup said.
In other words, Democrats were largely in favor of public school mask mandates and endless lockdown procedures such as distance learning. Republicans were not.


MASS EXODUS: Poll Shows 2 Million Students Have Left Public Schools - Big League Politics