Poll Reveals U.S. Parent’s Top Fears When Kids Go Back To School

A poll taken by a Michigan children's hospital yielded some of the most common fears parents in the United States have as they prepare to send their children back into the classroom.

With the start of the 2019-20 academic school year just days away, a national poll by C.S. Mott Children's Hospital gives us an idea of what the most common triggers for anxiety are for parents with school-aged kids. University of Michigan researchers received feedback from more than 2,000 parents in the U.S., and found that the children's ages were a big factor in the specific concerns each had.

Personally, having a 17-year-old daughter that is entering her senior year of high school, I'm not so much concerned with bullying as I am drug use. I trust my kid completely, but I was also her age once, and I know that getting an education took a back seat to partying with friends, particularly my junior and senior years.

Bullying and cyberbullying were the top fears parents who participated in the poll had, with 34% communicating so. Internet safety was next, with 30%. Stress, motor vehicle safety, school violence (25%), depression, eating habits, lack of exercise, drug abuse and sexting rounded out the top ten.

Researchers also concluded that bullying tends to routinely top these types of educational polls due to parent's fears their child will become depressed, and potentially attempt to harm themselves. For information on how to attempt to condition your child to avoid bullying others in school, click here.