Fewer parents sent children to preschool in 2021 in a decline that corresponded with the COVID-19 pandemic.
The percentage of 3-to-6-year-olds enrolled in preschool in the United States dropped by 9.3 percentage points from 2019 to 2021, from 51.1% to 41.8%, according to a new U.S. Census Bureau report.
The 4.1 million preschool enrollees in 2021 was the smallest number since the American Community Survey started collecting these data in 2005.
“These data show how the COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on patterns of early childhood education,” according to the report. “Future research will show if this was the start of a long-term trend or if enrollment will bounce back to prior levels.”