Children from better-off families are spending 30% more time on home learning than those from poorer families.

New IFS research finds that educational gaps are growing during the #coronavirus lockdown: https://www.ifs.org.uk/publications/14848

Primary and secondary students are each spending about 5 hours a day on average on home learning during the coronavirus pandemic.

But there are significant differences in how children are spending their time in #lockdown.

By 1 June - when some students could return to school - children in better-off families will have done extra home learning equivalent to a week and a half of full-time school.

If schools remain closed until the end of the current term, that gap would grow to over three weeks.

#Schoolclosures are almost certain to increase educational inequalities.

Pupils from better-off households are spending more time on education during the lockdown. They're more likely to spend time on particularly beneficial activities, like online classes and private tutors.

Almost 60% of the parents of primary school children and nearly half of the parents of secondary school children report that they are finding it quite or very hard to support their children’s learning at home.

Over half of parents in the highest-income fifth of families are willing to send their children back to school after the #lockdown. This compares to under a third of parents with the lowest incomes.

New IFS research: https://www.ifs.org.uk/publications/14848