The Staying Power of Remote Learning — And Remote Learning Stocks

It appears that remote learning will remain in some fashion, even beyond the pandemic, according to a recent survey by the Rand Corporation think tank. And that’s especially true for K-12 instruction. 

What Happened: Of the almost 300 American school districts surveyed, almost one-quarter plan to run virtual schooling during the 2021-22 school year, a ninefold increase in comparison with pre-pandemic levels. About 20% of parents surveyed were interested in keeping some form of remote instruction. Importantly, only about 6% of students surveyed wanted to have full remote instruction. 

Remote instruction has been particularly new for urban school districts in comparison with suburban counterparts.

Additionally, in the 2021-22 school year, majority white schools are more than 10% likely to have some or full remote courses in comparison with schools that have majority students of color. 

Why It Matters: It appears that virtual learning, in some capacity, is here to stay this year and possibly even after the pandemic recedes. At one point, over 1 billion students were learning away from a physical classroom and that seems to have made broad changes to educational systems. 

In 2019, educational technology companies received over $18 billion in funding. With over $350 billion anticipated to be invested in education technology by 2030, the World Economic Forum reports that remote learning is here to stay, especially as this aspect of learning allows for an increased retention of information in less time.

Over the pandemic, edX, an online learning platform, saw its user base increase 15-fold, according to CNBC reporting. A few automated language apps saw users double during March 2020, according to WSJ reporting. 

There are a few companies to especially look out for because they either prop up the online learning industry or operate directly within it. Franklin Covey Company FC has seen its stock skyrocket in the last year alone.

As has been eagerly reported, Zoom Video Communications ZM has become an incredibly relevant company, and the language company Duolingo DUOL, has been sliding for the past year, but still trades at $128 per share.

Photo: Sharon McCutcheon via Unsplash .