


































Global Research in Higher Education 
ISSN 2576-196X (Print) ISSN 2576-1951 (Online) 

Vol. 4, No. 3, 2021 

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1 

 

Original Paper 

The State of American Education during the Covid-19 Pandemic: 

Survey of American Public, Private, and Charter School 

Teachers 

Holim Song
1
 & Emiel W. Owens

2 
1
 Professor, College of Education, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX 77007, USA 

2
 Professor, College of Education, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX 77004, USA 

 

Received: March 29, 2021         Accepted: April 8, 2021       Online Published: June 19, 2021 

doi:10.22158/grhe.v4n3p1              URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.22158/grhe.v4n3p1 

 

Abstract 

The purpose of the present study was to examine how teachers and students are adjusting to the new 

online platform, the frequency and significance of connectivity problems and how teachers believe their 

students’ education quality is. An electronic link to a Qualtrics survey was sent to participants and a 

snowball sampling procedure (Handcock & Gile, 2011) was used. The online survey was open for 4 

weeks and a total of 165 teachers representing 22 states across the U.S. In general, a large percent of 

students across the country do not have stable or any internet services in their home. Furthermore, even 

for those that have internet access, connectivity issues caused problems for the entire class. New teachers 

in their first five years are less likely to offer alternatives when internet was not available and more likely 

changed their curriculum due to internet access issues.   

Keywords 

Online instructions, Internet, Connectivity problems, Teacher Education 

 

1. Introduction 

Schools around the country have closed temporarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It may be 

necessary for school closure in an attempt to contain the spread of the virus. These nationwide school 

closures are impacting the majority of student population in terms of learning opportunity. The digital 

divide between students has become apparent as schools have increasingly moved to remote learning. 

Some students are accessible to technology resources to learn remotely, but others lack internet 

connectivity or a computer. According to a paper by the Opportunity Insights (Chetty et al., 2020), 

low-income students who participated in online math classes per week plunged by 62%, while students 



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from high-income households were down 21% since the pandemic. The number of lessons completed 

by low-income students were down to 52%, while high-income students completed 14% more lessons 

in a given week. While low-income students are lacking internet and technology resource to complete 

their homework online, it seems that the gap between low and high income household are widening. 

These gaps during the COVID-19 crisis affect students’ learning opportunity especially for low-income 

students than affluent student. Twenty-first century learning absolutely requires technology and internet. 

In order to provide equal opportunity to learn regardless their household income status, students should 

have the technology they need to learn outside of school.  

In the following, new dataset from surveys of American teachers is presented. This survey focused on 

the effects of internet access on education. We consider how teachers and students are adjusting to the 

new online platform, the frequency and significance of connectivity problems, and how teachers 

believe their students’ education quality is. This dataset is a significant step in understanding the 

importance of having stable internet access during the current educational situation. It is important that 

we be able to understand how common and serious such effects are and continue to be. 

 

2. Method 

An online survey was developed to gather information on the effects of internet access on the state of 

teachers’ online instruction during the Covid-19 pandemic, incorporating the following areas: student 

participation, class disruptions, connectivity issues, curriculum changes, and other challenges. Data 

collection was done through the use of a Qualtrics online survey software and Excel. An electronic link 

to a Qualtrics survey was sent to participants and a snowball sampling procedure (Handcock & Gile, 

2011) was used. In this case survey respondents were encouraged to forward the survey link to 

colleagues. The online survey was open for 4 weeks. The survey included 23 questions and was 

designed to be brief, increasing the likelihood of respondents (Fan & Yan, 2010). Wherever possible, 

the survey included follow-up questions with qualitative feedback which can be found in the appendix. 

The truthfulness of participants may affect validity, but anonymity mitigates that. Participation was 

completely voluntary; we did not offer survey participants any form of compensation. All completed 

surveys were included in the study. A total of 165 surveys were included in the analysis representing 22 

states across the U.S... 

 

3. Results 

Table 1 reports the descriptive results of the survey. The first set of questions provide descriptive of the 

sample. The first question reports the distributions of teachers and the states they represent. In this case 

Texas followed by Iowa had the largest sampling of teachers to participate in the survey. For the state 

of Massachusetts, 17 teachers participated in the survey. The second item divides the states into regions 

of the country. North East represents states such as New York, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. North 

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Central states are represented by states such as Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Southern states were 

Texas, South Carolina, and Alabama just to name a few. Finally, Western states were represented by 

states such as California, Alaska, and Colorado. Item three on the survey ask the teacher to indicate the 

school setting they teach in. In this case, school settings were public, private, or charter school. The 

results indicated that the majority of teachers worked in a public-school setting. The next two items ask 

the teachers to indicate the number of years they had been in the teaching profession. The minimal was 

one year and the maximum number of years was Forty-two years. When years of teaching experience 

were categorized, the majority of teachers had been teaching between 11 and 20 years. In this case, 

almost 30% of the teachers had taught school between 11 and 20 years. 

 

Table 1. Overall Descriptive Data Sample 

Survey Question State Frequency Percent 

What state do you live 

in?  

Alabama 

Alaska 

California 

Colorado 

District of Columbia 

Iowa 

Massachusetts 

Michigan 

Mississippi 

Nebraska 

New York 

North Carolina 

Ohio 

Oklahoma 

Oregon 

Pennsylvania 

South Carolina 

Tennessee 

Texas 

Utah 

Washington 

Wisconsin 

1 

1 

6 

2 

1 

30 

17 

3 

3 

1 

4 

1 

4 

2 

1 

3 

1 

1 

64 

1 

2 

1 

0.7 

0.7 

4.0 

1.3 

0.7 

20.0 

11.3 

2.0 

2.0 

0.7 

2.7 

0.7 

2.7 

1.3 

0.7 

2.0 

0.7 

0.7 

42.7 

0.7 

1.7 

0.7 

Region of the Country North East 

North Central 

26 

41 

17.3 

27.3 



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South 

West 

70 

13 

46.7 

8.7 

What type of school do 

you teach at?  

Charter 

Private 

Public 

Other 

9 

25 

128 

3 

5.5 

15.2 

77.6 

1.8 

How long have you been 

teaching?  

Min 

1 

Max 

42 

Mean 

15.2 

SD 

10.4 

Years of Teaching 

Experience 

Years 

1-5 

6-10 

11-20 

21-30 

31+ 

Frequency 

34 

34 

46 

30 

17 

Percent 

21.1 

21.1 

28.6 

18.6 

10.6 

Note. N=165. 

 

The second set of questions (Table 2) are related to the impact of Covid-19 on student outcomes and 

internet issues associated with online instructions. The first item asked teachers if they felt their 

students were doing better or worse now that classes are online? More than two-thirds (about 70%) felt 

their students was doing somewhat worse or much worse in their class now that classes were being taught 

online. Roughly 20% of the teachers indicated that their students were performing about the same. The 

next item asked teachers if they had access to internet at home? Most of the teachers (approximately 93%) 

indicated that they do have internet at home. When asked what percent of students at their school had 

internet at home, the majority of the teachers (54.7%) indicated between 0 to 20%. About one-fourth 

(25%) of the teachers indicated that between 21 to 50 percent of their students had internet at home. It 

should be noted that only about 10 percent of teachers thought that between 76 to 100 percent of their 

students had internet at home.    

Associated with the previous question; teachers were asked if they or their students were having internet 

connectivity issues. About 50 percent of the teachers indicated that connectivity issues do occur 

sometimes. About one-third of the teachers reported connectivity issues occurred either half of the time 

or most of the times. Next, teachers were asked if students were offered an alternative if stable internet 

access was not available? About 70 percent of the teachers said “Yes” and the remaining 30 percent said 

“No”.   

 

 

 



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Table 2. Overall Descriptive Data Sample-Student Outcomes and Internet Issues 

Questions Impact Frequency Percent 

Are your students doing better or worse 

now that class is online?  

Much Better 

Somewhat Better 

About the Same 

Somewhat Worse 

Much Worse 

3 

10 

36 

77 

39 

1.8 

6.1 

21.8 

46.7 

23.6 

Do you have access to the internet at your 

home?  

Yes 

Yes, but Unstable 

No 

152 

11 

1 

92.7 

6.7 

0.6 

What percentage of students in your 

school do you estimate do not have a 

stable or any internet connection at 

home?  

0-20% 

21-50% 

51-75% 

76-100% 

88 

40 

16 

17 

54.7 

24.8 

9.9 

10.6 

Does dealing with internet connectivity 

issues, on either the teacher’s or student’s 

end, cause significant problems for the 

entire class?  

Never 

Sometimes 

Half of the times 

Most of the times 

Always 

19 

83 

24 

28 

11 

11.5 

50.3 

14.5 

17.0 

6.7 

Have you or your students been offered 

alternatives if stable internet access was 

not available?  

Yes 

No 

115 

48 

70.6 

29.4 

Note. N=165. 

 

The next set of items (Table 3) are related to curriculum issues associated with Covid-19. The first item 

asked teachers if they had changed their curriculum due to classes being online. About 60 percent of the 

teachers indicated they had and the remaining 40 percent said they had not. When asked if they were 

holding their class live, about 60 percent said “yes”; the remaining 40 percent said they did not hold live 

classes. Teachers were then asked if they had lost contact with any of their students; 72 percent said they 

had. Next teachers were asked if their students were able to follow along while at home, the majority 

(41.8%) said they might or might not. Approximately 30 percent of the teachers indicated that students 

were either “probably not” or “definitely not” following them at home. The final item related to 

curriculum issues asked if teachers felt that their students have problems engaging with class materials 

because of internet connectivity issues. Nearly 57 percent of the teachers indicated they believed their 

students were having problems engaging with class materials. 

 



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Table 3. Overall Descriptive Data Sample-Curriculum Issues 

Questions Impact Frequency Percent 

Have you changed your curriculum due to 

internet access issues? 

Yes 

No 

96 

69 

58.2 

41.8 

Are you holding class sessions live (i.e., no 

recorded)? 

Yes 

No 

98 

67 

59.4 

40.6 

Have you lost contact with any of your 

students because of school closures? 

Yes 

No 

118 

46 

72.0 

28.0 

Do you feel like your students are following 

along while at home? 

Definitely Not 

Probably Not 

Might or Might Not 

Probably Yes 

Definitely Yes 

20 

31 

69 

35 

10 

2.1 

18.8 

41.8 

21.2 

6.1 

Do students have problems engaging with 

class materials (class meetings, materials, 

etc.) because of internet connectivity issues? 

Yes 

No 

94 

71 

57.0 

43.0 

Note. N=165. 

 

The final set of questions (Table 4) were associated with students’ access to internet services and laptops 

through the school they attend. The first question asked teachers if they believe it is equal rights issue that 

should require schools to provide internet services to all students. Only about one-fourth (24%) believed 

that student access to internet services is an equal rights issue. The remaining 76 percent indicated that 

student access to internet services was not an equal rights issue. Teachers were then asked if they 

believed public internet access will improve student participation; almost 70 percent said “yes”. When 

asked should schools provide internet access to students, around 42 percent said “yes” if students cannot 

afford it. Thirty seven percent of the teachers indicated that all students should be provided internet 

through the school. The final question asked if schools should provide laptops to students; 60 percent said 

that schools should provide laptops to all students. Thirty percent of the teachers indicated that schools 

should provide laptops if students cannot afford them. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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Table 4. Overall Descriptive Data Sample-Access to Internet Services 

Questions Impact Frequency Percent 

In Brown v The Board of Education, the 

Court described an education as “a right 

which must be made available to all on equal 

terms.” Do you believe your school isn’t 

providing internet access to your students? 

Yes 

No 

35 

111 

24.0 

76.0 

Do you believe public internet access will 

improve student participation?  

Yes 

No 

101 

45 

69.2 

30.8 

Should schools provide internet access to 

students? 

Yes, to all students 

Yes, if cannot afford  

No 

54 

61 

31 

37.0 

41.8 

21.2 

Should schools provide laptops/tablets to 

students?  

Yes, to all students 

Yes, if cannot afford 

No 

88 

45 

13 

60.3 

30.8 

8.9 

Note. N=165. 

 

Table 5 reports descriptive outcomes across regions of the country. When asked if students were doing 

better or worse, teachers from North Central and Western stated students tend to be doing either 

somewhat worse or much worse compared to other states. Teachers from North-East and Southern states 

tend to indicate more students were performing about the same. When comparing internet access, three of 

the four regions reported more than 90 percent have access to internet at home. The only region that 

reported less than 90 percent were teachers in North Central states. When asked what percentage of 

students in their schools did not have internet at home, teachers from North-East had the highest 

percentages. In this case, teachers from North-East schools estimate that about 80 percent of their 

students have 0 to 20 percent access to internet services at home. Teachers in North Central states report 

their students have the most access to internet. About one-fourth of their students (50% or greater) have 

access to internet at home. When asked about internet connectivity issues; teacher in the North East 

reported the fewest concerns. In this case, about one-fourth of the teachers from North East states 

reported not having any connectivity issues. Over 20 percent of the teachers in Southern, North Central, 

and Western states reported having connectivity issues either most of the time or always. When asked if 

students have been offered alternatives if stable internet access was not available, teachers from Southern 

and North-Central states were more likely to say yes. About 76 percent of Southern teachers and 85 

percent of North-Central teachers reported they do provide alternatives to internet. Only about 46 percent 

of North-East teachers reported providing alternatives to internet.   

 



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Table 5. Descriptive Data by Region-Student Outcomes and Internet Issues 

  North-East South North-Central West 

Are your students doing better 

or worse now that class is 

online?  

Much Better 

Somewhat Better 

About the Same 

Somewhat Worse 

Much Worse 

3.8% 

15.4% 

38.8% 

26.9% 

15.5% 

1.4% 

7.1% 

31.4% 

44.3% 

15.7% 

2.4% 

2.4% 

7.3% 

48.8% 

39.0% 

0% 

0% 

7.7% 

61.5% 

30.8% 

Do you have access to the 

internet at your home?  

Yes 

Yes, but Unstable 

No 

96.2% 

3.8% 

0% 

94.3% 

4.3% 

0% 

87.8% 

9.8% 

2.4% 

92.3% 

7.7% 

0% 

What percentage of students 

in your school do you estimate 

to not have a stable or any 

internet at home?  

0-2% 

21-50% 

51-75% 

76-100% 

79.2% 

8.3% 

8.3% 

4.2% 

55.1% 

24.6% 

8.7% 

11.6% 

50.0% 

27.5% 

15.0% 

7.5% 

38.5% 

46.2% 

7.7% 

7.7% 

Does dealing with internet 

connectivity issues on either 

the teacher’s or student’s end, 

cause significant problems for 

the entire class? 

Never 

Sometimes 

Half of the time 

Most of the times 

Always 

23.1% 

69.2% 

7.7% 

0% 

0% 

8.6% 

54.4% 

12.9% 

18.6% 

8.6% 

7.3% 

41.5% 

19.5% 

24.4% 

7.3% 

15.4% 

38.5% 

15.4% 

23.1% 

7.7% 

Have you or your students 

been offered alternatives if 

stable internet access was not 

available?  

Yes 

No 

46.2% 

50.0% 

75.7% 

22.9% 

84.5% 

14.6% 

61.5% 

38.5% 

Note. N=165. 

  

When examining curriculum issues (Table 6), the first item asked teachers if they had to change their 

curriculum due to internet access? Teachers in the South had the highest percent; (64.3%) of teachers 

there indicated they did change their curriculum. Teachers in the Western states indicated the smallest 

percent (46.2%) of those teachers indicated they did change their curriculum due to internet access. 

When asked if they were holding class sessions live, teachers located in North-East schools reported the 

highest percent at about 82%. North-Central and Southern teachers reported the lowest percent at 51.2 

and 54.3% respectively. The next item asked if teachers felt they had lost contact with any of their 

students, teachers from the North Central reported the highest percentage with about 93 percent saying 

“yes”.   

 

 



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About 85 percent of the teachers from Western states also reported they had lost contact with some of 

their students. The lowest percent was teachers from North-East states with about 31 percent. The next 

item asked teachers whether they felt their students were following along while at home. Teachers from 

North East indicated the highest percentage in agreement. In this case about 65 percent of the North East 

teachers either said “probably yes” or “definitely yes” to their students being able to follow along while at 

home. About 30 percent of the teachers from Southern, North Central, and Western states indicated that 

their students were either probably not or definitely not following along while at home. The final 

question related to curriculum issues; teachers were asked if their students were having problems 

engaging with class materials because of internet connectivity issues, over 50 percent of the teachers 

from Southern, North Central and Western states said “yes”. The lowest percentage were teachers from 

North East with only about 39 percent saying “yes”. 

 

Table 6. Descriptive Data by Region-Curriculum Issues 

  North-East South North-Central West 

Have you changed your 

curriculum due to internet 

access issues?  

Yes 

No 

50.0% 

50.0% 

 

64.3% 

35.7% 

58.5% 

41.5% 

46.2% 

53.8% 

Are you holding class 

sessions live (i.e., not 

recorded? 

Yes 

No 

80.08% 

19.2% 

54.3% 

45.7% 

51.2% 

48.8% 

61.5% 

38.5% 

Have you lost contact with 

any of your students because 

of school closures? 

Yes 

No 

30.8% 

69.2% 

68.6% 

31.4% 

92.7% 

7.3% 

84.6% 

7.7% 

Do you feel like your students 

are following along while at 

home?  

Definitely Not 

Probably Not 

Might or Might 

Not 

Probably Yes 

Definitely Yes 

7.7% 

7.7% 

19.2% 

42.3% 

23.1% 

12.9% 

21.4% 

37.1% 

27.1% 

1.4% 

9.8% 

24.4% 

56.1% 

7.3% 

2.4% 

7.7% 

23.1% 

53.8% 

15.4% 

0% 

Do students have problems 

engaging with class materials 

(Class meeting, materials, 

etc.) because of internet 

connectivity issues? 

Yes 

No 

38.5% 

61.5% 

58.6% 

41.4% 

58.5% 

41.5% 

53.8% 

46.2% 

Note. N=165. 

 



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The final set of questions (Table 7) were associated with access to internet services. The first question 

asked if teachers felt equal rights are being violated if schools do not provide internet access to students. 

Approximately 30 percent of the teachers from Southern and Western states agreed it was an equal 

rights issue. About 85 percent of North East states teachers said no it was not equal rights. The next 

question asked teachers if they believed public internet access will improve student participation. Over 

two-thirds of the teacher from North East, Southern, and North Central states said “yes” to this 

statement. Nearly 62 percent of the Western state teachers agreed with this statement. When asked if 

schools should provide internet access to students, Western states teachers had the highest percent 

(46.2%) that indicated that internet access should be provided to all students. Teachers from North East 

states had the lowest percent (26.9%) of those teachers indicated that schools should provide internet to 

all students. Furthermore, 50 percent of the teachers from North East states indicated that the school 

should provide students internet if they cannot afford it. About 20 percent of teachers across North East, 

Southern, and North Central indicated No, schools should not be responsible for providing internet to 

their students. When asked if schools should provide their students with laptops, North Central teachers 

had the highest percent (73.2%) that said “yes”, to all students. Teachers from North East states had the 

lowest percentage of teachers that agreed that school should provide laptops to all students.  

However, North East teachers had the highest percentage of teachers that suggested schools should 

provide their students with laptops if they can’t afford them. It should be pointed out; slightly over 20% 

of the teachers from Western states said “no”, school should not provide laptops to their students. 

 

Table 7. Descriptive Data by Region-Access to Internet Services 

  North-East South North-Central West 

In Brown v The Board of 

Education, the Court described 

an education as “a right which 

must be made available to all 

on equal terms.” Do you 

believe your school isn’t 

providing internet access to 

your students? 

Yes 

No 

15.4% 

84.6% 

28.6% 

65.7% 

17.1% 

82.9% 

30.8% 

69.2% 

Do you believe public internet 

access will improve student 

participation?  

Yes 

No 

69.2% 

30.8% 

68.6% 

25.7% 

65.9% 

34.1% 

61.5% 

38.5% 

Should schools provide 

internet access to students? 

Yes, to all 

Students 

Yes, if can’t afford 

26.9% 

50.0% 

23.1% 

37.1% 

37.1% 

20.0% 

36.6% 

41.5% 

22.0% 

46.2% 

38.5% 

15.4% 



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No 

Should schools provide 

laptops/tablets to students?  

Yes, to all 

Students 

Yes, if can’t afford 

No 

38.5% 

53.8% 

7.1% 

58.6% 

28.6% 

7.1% 

73.2% 

19.5% 

7.3% 

53.8% 

23.1% 

23.1% 

Note. N=165. 

 

Table 8 looks at descriptive outcomes associated with student outcomes and internet issues, curriculum 

issues and access to internet services across teachers’ years of teaching experience. Under student 

outcomes the first question asks if teachers believed their students were doing better or worse now that 

classes were online. Over 75 percent of the teachers with 6 to 10 years of teaching service believed their 

students were performing either somewhat worse or much worse academically since classes have been 

moved to online. Over 60 percent of the other teachers with 0 to 5, 11 to 20, 21 to 30 years of teaching 

experience, and teachers with 31 plus years believed that their students were doing somewhat worse or 

much worse since their students have moved to online classes. Finally, about one third of the teachers 

with 11 to 20 teaching experience believed that students were doing about the same since moving to an 

online platform. When asked if teachers had access to internet at home over 90 percent of all the teachers 

across all teaching experience levels said they did. When ask to estimate what percent of their students do 

not have stable internet of no internet at all, 0 to 20 percent received the highest percent. This was true 

across all levels of teaching experience categories. The percent of teachers indicating 0 to 20 of their 

students do not have stable internet of no internet at all range from 66.7 percent for teachers with 0 to 5 

teaching experience to 40 percent for teachers with 31 plus years of experience. It should also be noted 

that one third of the teachers with 31 plus years of teaching experience indicated that between 76 to 100 

percent or their students do not have stable internet of no internet at all. When ask if connectivity Issues 

causes significant problems for either teachers or students, majority of the teachers across all teaching 

experience levels indicated sometimes. Slightly more than 25 percent of the teachers with 31 plus years 

of experience indicated connectivity Issues causes significant problems either most of the times or 

always. When asked if an alternative to internet was being offered teachers with 11 to 20 and 21 to 30 

reported the highest percent of 84.4 and 78.8 percent respectively. The lowest percent were for the groups 

0 to 5 and 31 plus years of experience with 47.1 and 53.3 respectively.  

 

 

 

 

 

 



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Table 8. Descriptive Data by Years of Teaching Experience-Student Outcomes and Internet Issues 

  Years of Teaching Experience 

  0-5 6-10 11-20 21-30 31+ 

Are your students doing 

better or worse now that 

class is online?  

Much Better 

Somewhat Better 

About the Same 

Somewhat Worse 

Much Worse 

0% 

8.8% 

20.6% 

32.4% 

38.2% 

0% 

2.9% 

17.6% 

55.9% 

23.5% 

0% 

2.2% 

31.1% 

51.1% 

15.6% 

3.0% 

9.1% 

21.2% 

48.5% 

18.2% 

6.7% 

13.3% 

13.3% 

40.0% 

26.7% 

Do you have access to the 

internet your home?  

Yes 

Yes, but Stable 

No 

91.2% 

8.8% 

0% 

91.2% 

8.8% 

0% 

95.6% 

2.2% 

0% 

90.9% 

9.1% 

0% 

93.3% 

6.7% 

0% 

What percentage of 

students in your school do 

you estimate to not have a 

stable or any internet 

connection at home?  

0-20% 

21-50% 

51-75% 

76-100% 

66.7% 

21.2% 

6.1% 

6.1% 

 

42.4% 

39.4% 

9.1% 

9.1% 

65.1% 

16.3% 

9.3% 

9.3% 

54.5% 

30.3% 

9.1% 

6.1% 

40.0% 

13.3% 

13.3% 

33.3% 

Does dealing with internet 

connectivity issues on 

either the teacher’s 

significant problem for the 

entire class?  

Never 

Sometimes 

Half of the times 

Most of the times 

Always 

17.6% 

50.0% 

11.8% 

14.7% 

5.9% 

8.8% 

44.1% 

26.5% 

11.8% 

8.8% 

13.3% 

51.1% 

8.9% 

26.7% 

0% 

6.1% 

63.6% 

12.1% 

6.1% 

12.1% 

13.3% 

40.0% 

20.0% 

13.3% 

13.3% 

Have you or your students 

been offered alternatives if 

internet access was not 

available?  

Yes 

No 

47.1% 

52.9% 

76.5% 

23.5% 

84.4% 

11.1% 

78.8% 

21.2% 

53.3% 

46.7% 

Note. N=165. 

 

The next group of items (Table 9) addresses curriculum issues associated with the move to online classes. 

The first question in this section asked if teachers had changed their curriculum due to internet access 

issues. About two-thirds of the teachers in the 0 to 5 and 11-20 years of experience indicated they had. 

The lowest groups were teachers with 21 to 30 and 31+ years of teaching experience with percentages of 

48.5 and 33.3 respectively. When asked if teachers were holding classes live, the largest group were 

teachers with 31+ years of experience, with 80 percent. The next highest percentage were teachers with 0 

to 5 teaching years with about 62 percent saying “yes”. The lowest group of teachers were those with 6 to 

10, 11 to 20 and 21 to 30 teaching years, with percentages of 55.9, 57.8 and 51.5 respectively. When 

asked if teachers had lost contact with students because of school closures, teachers with 6 to 10 teaching 



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years indicated the highest percentage at about 85 percent. The lowest percentage were teachers with 31+ 

years of teaching experience, with about 47 percent saying “yes”. Teachers from 0 to 5 years and 11 to 20 

years, indicated about 73 percent have lost contact with some of their students.     

The next item asked was whether teachers felt their students were able to follow along while at home. 

Almost 45 percent of the teachers with 0 to 5 years of teaching experience indicated that their students 

were either “probably not” or “definitely not” able to follow along. It should be pointed out; roughly 40 

percent of the teachers in the 21 to 30 and 31+ years indicated their students were either “probably yes” 

or “definitely yes” able to follow along at home. The next item asked whether teachers felt their students 

were having problems engaging with class materials because of internet issues. Teachers in the 31 + 

teaching year group had the lowest percent (46.7%) that responded “yes” to students having problems 

engaging with class materials. The group with the highest percent (65%) stating “yes”, their students 

were having problems engaging with class materials were teachers with 6 to 10 years of teaching 

experience.  Approximately 60 percent of the teachers in the 0 to 5 and 21 to 30 teaching experience 

groups responded “yes” to this question. 

 

Table 9. Descriptive Data by Years of Teaching Experience-Curriculum Issues 

  Years of Teaching Experience 

  0-5 6-10 11-20 21-30 31+ 

Have you changed your 

curriculum due to internet 

access issue? 

Yes 

No 

67.6% 

32.4% 

 

61.8% 

38.2% 

68.9% 

31.1% 

48.5% 

51.5% 

33.3% 

66.7% 

Are you holding class 

sessions live (i.e., not 

recorded)? 

Yes 

No 

61.8% 

38.2% 

55.9% 

44.1% 

57.8% 

42.2% 

51.5% 

48.5% 

80.0% 

20.0% 

Have you lost contact with 

any of your students because 

of school closures? 

Yes 

No 

73.5% 

26.5% 

85.3% 

14.7% 

73.3% 

26.7% 

66.7% 

33.3% 

46.7% 

53.3% 

Do you feel like your students 

are following along while at 

home? 

Definitely Not 

Probably Not 

Might or Might Not 

Probably Yes 

Definitely Yes 

23.5% 

20.6% 

38.2% 

14.7% 

2.9% 

11.8% 

29.4% 

38.2% 

20.3% 

0% 

4.4% 

17.8% 

53.3% 

17.8% 

6.7% 

6.1% 

15.2% 

36.4% 

36.4% 

6.1% 

20.0% 

6.7% 

33.3% 

20.0% 

20.0% 

Does students have problem 

engaging with class materials 

(Class meeting, materials, 

etc.) because of internet 

connectivity issues? 

Yes 

No 

58.8% 

41.2% 

64.7% 

35.3% 

51.5% 

48.9% 

60.6% 

39.4% 

46.7% 

53.3% 

Note. N=165. 



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The last section (Table 10) looks at teachers’ perception to student access to internet services. The first 

question asks teachers if they fill it an equal rights issue associated with student access to internet 

services. The highest percent of teachers that agreed with this statement were teacher with 0 to 5 years of 

experience.  In this case about 32 percent of this group said “yes”. The next highest group of teachers 

that agreed with the statement was 31 plus teaching experience. About 29 percent said “yes” that this was 

an equal rights issue.  

The group with the lowest percent was teachers in the 11 to 20 group. Seventeen percent of these teachers 

said “yes”. The next item asks if teachers believe that public internet access will improve student 

participation. Three groups, 6 to 10, 11 to 20 and 31 plus responded “yes” at a rate of 70 percent or above. 

About two-thirds of the remaining group, 0 to 5 and 21 to 30 answered “yes” to this item. When asked if 

teachers believed that schools should provide internet access to students, the highest percent of teachers 

that said “yes” to all students were teachers in the 31 plus years of experience group. About 43 percent of 

these teachers agreed with this statement. The remaining four teaching experience groups agreed that 

schools should provide internet access to all students range from about 39 percent for the group 0 to 5, to 

33.3 percent for the group 21 to 30. A large percent of the groups suggested that schools should provide 

internet access to student if they cannot afford it. The percentages range from a high of 50 percent for the 

21 to 30 group, to about 36 percent for teachers in the 31 plus years of experience. Slightly more than 21 

percent of 0 to 5, 6 to 10, 11-20 and 31 plus groups said “no” schools should not provide internet access 

to students.   

The final question associated with access to internet services was should schools provide laptops or 

tables to students. Sixty nine percent of the teachers in the 6 to 10 group said “yes” schools should 

provide laptop/tables to all students. About 64 percent of the teachers in the 0 to 5 and 21 to 30 groups of 

teachers said “yes” schools should provide laptop/tables to all students. The lowest percent of teachers 

that agreed that schools should provide laptop/tables to all students were the group 31 plus. About 29 

percent of the 31 plus group of teachers said “yes”. It should be noted that the 31 plus group of teachers 

had the highest percent (42.9%) of teachers saying “yes”, schools should provide laptop/tables to all 

students if they cannot afford to.  Furthermore, 31 plus group of teachers had the highest percent (28.5%) 

of teachers saying “no”, schools should not provide laptop/tables to all students. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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Table 10. Descriptive Data by Years of Teaching Experience-Access to Internet Services 

  Years of Teaching Experience 

  0-5 6-10 11-20 21-30 31+ 

In Brown v The Board of 

Education, the Court described 

an education as “a right which 

must be made available to all 

on equal terms.” Do you 

believe your school isn’t 

providing internet access to 

your students? 

Yes 

No 

32.1% 

67.9% 

26.0% 

74.0% 

17.0% 

83.0% 

23.3% 

76.7% 

28.6% 

71.4% 

Do you believe public internet 

access will improve student 

participation?  

Yes 

No 

67.9% 

32.1% 

70.0% 

30.0% 

75.6% 

24.4% 

66.7% 

33.3% 

71.4% 

28.6% 

Should schools provide 

internet access to students? 

Yes, to all students 

Yes, if can’t afford 

No 

39.3% 

39.3% 

21.4% 

34.5% 

41.4% 

24.1% 

36.6% 

39.0% 

24.4% 

33.3% 

50.0% 

16.7% 

42.9% 

35.7% 

21.4% 

Should schools provide 

laptops/tablets to students?  

Yes, to all students 

Yes, if can’t afford 

No 

64.3% 

35.7% 

0% 

69.0% 

24.1% 

6.9% 

56.1% 

38.7% 

5.2% 

63.3% 

33.3% 

3.4% 

28.6% 

42.9% 

28.5% 

Note. N=165. 

 

4. Discussion 

The impact of COVID 19 has had a devastating effect on an already struggling educational system in 

the United States. This is especially true since over the years, one of the major divisions in succeeding 

or failing in school has been centered on the technology divide. In this case successful schools are more 

likely to have more technical access, such as internet and computers in the classrooms, compared to 

failing schools that have limited access to technology. Students attending these successful schools are 

more likely to have computers and internet access at home compared to students attending these failing 

schools. Therefore, with the closing of schools due to COVID 19, the educational system, K-12, 

Colleges, and Universities are now forced to rely on technology and the internet to continue to educate 

their communities. This could lead to further educational divide influenced by the technology divide. 

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of school closing due to COVID 19 on the 

classroom teachers through the eyes of technology issues across the country. The first important finding 

in the study is related to the overall descriptive outcomes. In general, a large percent of students across 

the country do not have stable or any internet services in their home. Furthermore, even for those that 



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have internet, connectivity issues caused problems for the entire class. In general, teachers indicated 

students were doing worse academically due to being relegated to learning in an online environment. 

However, most teachers are offering an alternative to internet instructions when internet access is not 

available. Teachers overall believe their students are doing worse academically due to the online 

platform. 

When asked about curriculum changes, only a small majority indicated they have changed their 

curriculum to fit the online environment. Overall, a small majority are holding class live online now; 

however, a large percent of the teachers reported that they had lost contact with some of their students 

due to the online nature of classes. Teachers proceeded to say that students may or maybe not be able to 

follow along with them at home. Additionally, a small majority of teachers suggest students had 

problems engaging with class materials due to internet connections. Most teachers did not believe 

internet access is an equal rights issue. However, the majority of teachers did believe that schools 

should provide lab top/tables to all students. When asked “should schools provide internet access to 

students?”, many of the teachers indicated “yes”, if students cannot afford it. Finally, teachers do 

believe that public internet will improve student participation. 

The second important finding in this study is related to the comparison of responses between the 

teachers across regions of the country. When asked if their students are doing better or worse due to 

online classes, teachers from North Central and Western states advised that their students were 

struggling more compared to other regions of the country. Teachers in North East states tended to have 

less internet connectivity issues compared to other regions, and North Central and Western regions 

tended to have the most problems. North East states had more live class sessions and less contact lost 

with their students compared to other regions. With more online classes, North East teachers report 

fewer students were having problems engaging with class materials due to internet issues. Finally, 

North East teachers stated that their students were more likely to be able to follow along while at home 

compared to other regions. 

North Central teachers had the lowest percent when asked if they were holding class sessions live. This 

may explain why they are reporting the largest percent of teachers that have lost contact with some of 

their students. Likewise, this might explain why these teachers are having the most problems with 

students following along with instructions at home. Similar to North Central states, Western and 

Southern states have a small majority of teachers that were teaching classes live. This is also associated 

with a large percentage of teachers reporting they have lost contact with some of their students. These 

teachers are also indicating a significant percent of their students are having problems following along 

with instructions at home. 

The third important finding in this study was associated with years of teaching experience. New 

teachers in their first five years are less likely to offer alternatives when internet was not available 

compared to other teaching experience groups. Furthermore, new teachers were more likely changed 



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their curriculum due to internet access issues compared to other teaching experience groups. Finally a 

higher percent of new teachers believed the internet access is an equal rights issue compared to other 

teaching experience groups. Teachers with 31 plus years were less likely to change their curriculum, 

more likely to hold class live sessions and less likely to lose contact with their students. Furthermore, 

for this teaching group their students are less likely to have problems engaging with class materials 

because of internet connectivity issues, compared to other teaching groups. Finally, this teaching group 

were more likely to agree that schools provide internet access to all students and less likely to agree to 

schools provide laptops to all students. 

 

5. Implication and Conclusion  

It is clear from the findings that K-12 educators are indicating that internet access and internet 

connectivity are essential components of teaching and learning remotely due to COVID-19. As students 

and teachers are more rely on internet technology regardless of face-to-face or online class format, it is 

important that pre-service teachers are prepared properly to utilize effective use of communication 

technology in order to meet online instructional format. However, it appears that technology integration 

into either face-to-face or online class is still fragmented and taught as a separate skill set, rather than 

technology being embedded into all course work in the education preparation program. The problem 

with this approach is that while pre-service teachers are exposed to technology, they do not have 

adequate models that demonstrate how technology can be a tool for enhancing teaching and learning 

and not a just a separate skill. For effective technology integration, the program process needs to focus 

on the learner rather than specific content. The internet can enhance the classroom learning 

environment by providing instant access to class materials, teachers, and peers. This study has 

highlighted some of the current success and problems association with the internet and online 

instructions. Furthermore, this study will lead to scientific studies and large scales studies that can 

identify remedies to the issues that this study has identified.   

 

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