Academic activities and household demands. They are more likely to be average older women who are either single parents or married.

Source 1: Crispin, Laura and Nikolaou, Dimitrios. “Balancing College and Kids: Estimating Time Allocation Differences for College Students with and without Children.” (2019) The Authors of this article are Laura M. Crispin and Dimitrios Nikolaou (2019). 1. A significant college population now comprises student-parents, with 25 percent of students being parents, and little is known about how they balance their academic activities and household demands. They are more likely to be average older women who are either single parents or married. 2. Students-parents typically face financial difficulties and have to spend their time working to pay for their postsecondary degree. This is shown by the fact that student-parents who work on weekends still have to work 43 minutes more than student-nonparents despite having children to care for, suggesting that student-parents spend more time on paid work than on childcare and homework. 3. “Similar to previous qualitative studies, we find that student-parents are more likely to be women, non-White, non-Black, and older than traditional college students. By analyzing time diary data, we find that student-parents are spending less time on school-related activities (classes, homework, and extracurriculars), but more time on paid work, than student-nonparents” (Crispin & Nikolaou). Source 2: Child Care Is a Barrier for Parenting Students, Center for the Study of Social Policy (2023) This article discusses the challenges that parenting students face and gives some possible solutions. 4. Student-parents have multiple activities, including going to class, caregiving, and working to accomplish their goals; childcare giving is among the greatest challenges that parenting students face while pursuing their careers, as several instances require the presence of the parent. 5. “Public systems and programs can provide critical support, but frequently create additional hurdles for parenting students and their families—especially those with low incomes.” (Child Care is 1).

6. Parenting students need to be supported to meet their needs; however, there are many cases where they do not receive any form of government assistance, leading to greater challenges and increased paid work time over time spent on school-related activities. Source 3: Duquaine-Watson, Jillian M. “Mothering by Degrees: Single mothers and the pursuit of postsecondary education.” Rutgers University Press, 2017. The Author of this article is Jillian M. Duquaine-Watson (2017). 7. There are unique challenges that returning students with children face upon returning to school, such as the chilly institutional climate, time constraints, and financial struggles. It becomes significant for institutions across the nation to implement policies that reduce expenses; however, childcare receives very little attention. 3 8. “Yet unless the increasing demand for child care among college students is addressed, it seems likely that single mothers and other students with children, like many American families, will remain mired in the current child care crisis” (Duquaine-Watson 140). Source 4: Contreras-Mendez, Susana, and Lindsey Reichlin Cruse. “Busy with Purpose: Lessons for Education and Policy Leaders from Returning Student Parents.” Institute for Women’s Policy Research (2021). The authors are Susana Contreras-Mendez and Lindsey Reichlin Cruse (2021). 9. “The financial burden associated with college enrollment has put higher education increasingly out of reach for many student parents. While interviewees described receiving federal financial and emergency aid, scholarships, and public assistance, as well as taking out loans, for many, these sources are often not accessible or not enough. Small institutional debts also cause delays in student parents’ progress towards completion” (Contreras-Mendez & Cruse 2). 10. The issue of postsecondary education dropout has been caused by several barriers that can be addressed in several ways, such as online learning, program assistance, and general support. Thesis is Students returning with children face many challenges while pursuing higher education such as finances, time management and well being. Colleges can reduce these obtacles by providing progarms such as support groups, jobs, and child care. The paragraphs need to be related to the 4 articles. Please MLA 9th edition.