Americans strongly embrace having charter school and other choice options other than their assigned schools, and believe that multiple avenues of delivery are best, according to a compendium of polling released today by The Center for Education Reform. The summary of three years of national and state polling demonstrates that support grows with knowledge, and when presented with information in a clear, neutral way about various reform ideas, support is both high and deep. For example:
- While most Americans do not know what a charter school is, given a clear definition, 78% of Americans support "allowing communities to create new public schools – called charter schools – that would be held accountable for student results and would be required to meet the same academic standards and testing requirements as other public schools."
- State by state, the awareness of and support for charter schools is higher in states with stronger charter laws and higher levels of media coverage.
- Issues such as performance pay, which is growing in support among teachers and will be a major shift in union contracts in cities such as Washington, DC, is favorably viewed by 59% of those surveyed.
- The conventional notion of zip code based assignment is rejected by a majority of adults. Fully, 69% of Americans surveyed reject requiring children to attend one public school based solely on where they live.
- Not surprisingly, safety is of utmost concern to Americans, 78% of whom would be very or somewhat likely to remove their child from a school if the child felt unsafe.
An annual poll by the Gallup organization in partnership with a traditional education group and released last week reported much less support among Americans. "Our data, coupled with extensive analysis of polling on education reform over the years, confirm what we know from our day-to-day work in American communities – that the people want immediate opportunities for children that work, regardless of what it is called or if it is outside of what they have grown up to view as traditional public education," said CER president Jeanne Allen.
"The public supports education, and not just through one kind of system," Allen noted. "We are encouraged by increasing attention in the presidential race but are far from saturated with what should be considered the most important global issue of our time."
Link to a report summary here or the complete report here. For interviews or comment, contact Jonathan Oglesby, Director of Public Relations, at 800-521-2118.
The Center for Education Reform drives the creation of better educational opportunities for all children.
