Three-quarters of parents (75%) and educators (73%) say technology products and services have eased at-home learning during the COVID-19 outbreak, according to a new Consumer Technology Association (CTA) study. Looking ahead, nearly four in five (78%) parents and educators believe coronavirus restrictions will lead to more remote education for the 2020/2021 school year.
Nearly two-thirds of parents (64%) and educators (61%) surveyed say they are satisfied with the remote education experience. For both parents and educators, previous experience with remote education significantly boosted their satisfaction.
“Technology has allowed students to keep learning during the pandemic,” says Lesley Rohrbaugh, director of research, CTA. “As people continue to adjust to the remote learning experience, technology’s collaborative nature is key to enabling education and social connection when going back to schools isn’t an option yet.”
More STEM educators (72%) agree that technology products and services are helping students feel connected with their classmates than their non-STEM educator counterparts (57%).
“The more educators are comfortable using technology to teach remotely, the more effective they find using technology in the classroom,” says Rohrbaugh. “Technology is uniquely able to maintain essential classroom connections despite the physical distance of remote learning.”
Demand for technology products and services by both parents and educators has grown because of remote education. Among the technology services surveyed, video conferencing software such as Microsoft Teams or Zoom, and platforms specifically designed for education such as Seesaw and Blackboard, saw the largest percentage point increases (up 42 and 11 percentage points, respectively) among educators in weekly use after shifting to remote teaching. Additionally, parents purchased tablets (59%), laptops (58%) and smartphones (56%) for their child to use while attending school remotely.
CTA’s COVID-19 Impact: Technology and Remote Education presents the findings of a survey among 500 educators and 1004 parents of children grades K through 12 in the U.S. who engaged in at-home/remote education as a result of coronavirus pandemic–related school closures. The educator survey was fielded June 1–8, 2020, and the parent survey was fielded June 1–7, 2020. It is designed and formulated by CTA Market Research, the most comprehensive source of sales data, forecasts, consumer research and historical trends for the consumer technology industry.
The complete study is available for free for CTA member companies or purchase at CTA.tech/research.
Consumer Technology Association
As North America’s largest technology trade association, CTA is the tech sector. Our members are the world’s leading innovators – from startups to global brands – helping support more than 18 million American jobs. CTA owns and produces CES – the largest, most influential tech event in the world. Find us at CTA.tech.
