Students who are parents are a significant group in higher education but are still facing unique challenges when pursuing their academic goals. This is something many higher education institutions are looking to address through technology advancements to make education more accessible and flexible.
In fact, across the country, 22 percent of undergraduate students are parents, and of the 3.8 million students raising children in college, about 70% are mothers. However, because of the high demands of their lives and continued issues accessing higher education, student parents are also a significantly vulnerable group at risk for dropout and are 10 times less likely to complete a bachelor degree program within five years.
In a survey of more than 11,000 U.S. college students, Claire Wladis, a professor of mathematics at Borough of Manhattan Community College, found that student parents had significantly less time for college than their childless peers, averaging around four hours less for school work per week. Student parents, particularly mothers of preschool-age children, often find themselves struggling with scarce time to complete their degree. Researchers have dubbed this occurrence “time poverty” and have identified it as a primary struggle for these students working towards their degree.
“I think student parents are in a bit of a double bind, in that they have less time for college, but it can be particularly important to them, because of their kids, to get a degree for financial reasons and to set a good example for their children,” Wladis stated. “So they’ll often spend even more of their already limited time resources on their education, but it’s often not enough to make up for the gap.”
The survey results indicate that the vast majority of student parents do not have enough time or enough childcare to cover the time they need to complete schoolwork. Furthermore, the results suggest that improving college outcomes for student parents requires consideration of time poverty.
Higher education leaders are trying to address these challenges with equitable learning solutions, providing educational resources to all students. For some schools, part of the solution has been providers such as BibliU, an EdTech platform that provides access to crucial course content from day one via digital courseware, allowing for flexibility and planning.
BibliU is a learning enablement platform that empowers higher education institutions to streamline their textbook and courseware workflows to achieve greater student outcomes, affordability, and social mobility. Their mission is to enable more equitable, effective, and efficient learning for students; help improve student performance, satisfaction, and retention; provide a profitable and growing digital channel for publishers; and reduce the admin burden on institutions through workflow automation.
For student parents who choose to pursue their academic career through an online program, the platform and program must be designed with student needs in mind. Allowing for flexibility through digital courseware encourages engaged learning and lowers the barrier to entry for all students. In addition to providing a more seamless re-entry into higher education, BibliU's technology provides students and specifically, student parents, with the tools needed to learn while living a busy life.