61pc happy over reopening of schools: survey

KARACHI: Nearly 61 per cent of respondents of a survey expressed their happiness over the reopening of schools following long vacations due to the Covid-19 pandemic, while 17pc rejected the decision.

The IPSOS conducted an opinion poll from Jan 27 to Feb 2 from a sample size of over 1,000 people across the country seeking their reaction to the reopening of schools. 

The opinion was sought from respondents of different genders, across the four provinces, urban-rural and socioeconomic divide.

Every three out of five respondents expressed approval for starting schools after a very long gap constituting 61 pc approval ratings against 17pc who disapproved of the development. In terms of gender, 66pc males and 52pc women approved it.

Across the provinces, 68pc respondents from Sindh approved, while 16pc disapproved of the decision. In the case of KPK, 61pc respondents approved, 17pc disapproved of the idea. Whereas in Punjab, 60pc approved and 17pc disapproved it and in Balochistan, 41pc respondents approved and 11pc disapproved it. A larger number of people favoured reopening of schools in the urban areas as compared to the rural areas.

During the survey, 62pc respondents from the urban area approved and 57pc from the rural areas disapproved it. The same distinction was observed across the socioeconomic divide where 69pc respondents from the lower class expressed appreciation for the move. As many as 68pc respondents from the lower middle class, 58pc middle class, and 55pc from the upper middle class and upper class approved the reopening of schools.