Kaplan Test Prep Survey: 35% of Teens with Parents on Facebook Aren’t Friends with Them; Nearly 40% Admit the Reason is Because They’ve Ignored Mom or Dad’s Friend Request

Even as Most High School Students Say Their Parents are Involved in their Academic Lives, Many Teens Want to Keep Them Out of their Facebook Realms

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--According to Kaplan Test Prep’s latest survey* on social networking trends and practices among today’s teens, 35% of teens whose parents are on Facebook report that they are actually not online friends with them. Of that group, 38% say the reason they are not friends is because they’ve ignored mom or dad’s friend request. But even as some teens ignore their parents’ friend requests, 82% say that mom and dad are either “very involved” (44%) or “somewhat involved” (38%) in their academic lives.

“Although for generations high school students have come to accept and even embrace their parents’ involvement in their academic work and the college admissions process, Facebook continues to be the new frontier in the ever evolving relationship between parent and child”

“Although for generations high school students have come to accept and even embrace their parents’ involvement in their academic work and the college admissions process, Facebook continues to be the new frontier in the ever evolving relationship between parent and child,” said Kristen Campbell, executive director, college prep programs, Kaplan Test Prep. “When a teen ignores a parent’s friend request, it doesn’t necessarily mean that they are hiding something, but it could mean that this is one particular part of their life where they want to exert their independence. Alternatively, some parents and their children may actually mutually decide to keep their Facebook lives private from one another.”

Other key Kaplan Test Prep survey results:

• 16% of teens who are friends with their parents on Facebook report that being friends with them was a pre-condition for being allowed to create their own profile.
• 38% say that if their parents were able to see their progress in their SAT or ACT prep classes – just like they track their progress in school – that they would have put more effort in.

A separate May 2010 Kaplan Test Prep survey of 973 high school students reported that of teens who said their parents were on Facebook, a much higher percentage (56%) provided their parents with full profile access – status updates, party photos and all – than with no access at all (34%). Only 9% of teens gave their parents limited access.

*The survey was conducted by e-mail of 2,313 Kaplan Test Prep students who took the SAT and/or ACT between June 2010 and December 2010.

About Kaplan Test Prep

Kaplan Test Prep (www.kaptest.com), a division of Kaplan, Inc., is a premier provider of educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. Established in 1938, Kaplan is the world leader in the test prep industry. With a comprehensive menu of online offerings and a complete array of books, Kaplan offers preparation for more than 90 standardized tests, including entrance exams for secondary school, college and graduate school, as well as English language and professional licensing exams. Kaplan also provides private tutoring and graduate admissions consulting services.

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