Poll: Majority of Public Wants Greater Federal Support for Education
The U.S. general public is sharply divided over most public policy issues,
including education. Still, according to the just-released 2020 PDK International Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the
Public Schools, a strong majority say they want the federal government to take on more
active role in helping school districts hire and retain quality teachers,
make college more affordable, and fight discrimination in school.
“Americans tend to agree that we need to support our public schools,” said
Josh Starr, CEO of PDK International “Right now, we’re all struggling to
respond to the coronavirus. But even in the midst of the immediate crisis,
we can’t afford to lose sight of our long-term goals and commitments. Public
education is the cornerstone of our democracy.”
The PDK survey, now in its 52nd year, is conducted annually to gauge the
general public’s opinions on a variety of issues affecting public education.
More than one thousand adults, including 206 parents of children in K-12
public schools, were surveyed this year. It’s important to note that
the survey was conducted back in March, just as the nation’s schools began
to close down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Accordingly, rather than
“revealing immediate reactions to the pandemic,” Starr said, the survey
“sheds light on gradual changes in Americans’ beliefs and attitudes about
the public schools.”
Because the survey was conducted during COVID-19’s earlier stages, when
asked to name the most pressing issue facing public schools, only 5
percent of the public (and 6 percent of parents) named the pandemic.
School funding, bullying, and substance abuse were the top three. The
percentage for funding was only half of what is was in last year’s
survey – 13% compared to 27%. Obviously, as schools face crippling budget
cuts from the recent economic collapse, concerns over funding have grown exponentially since March.
“There’s no doubt that the coronavirus pandemic has thrown public
education into a tailspin, but we can’t lose sight of what’s important to
parents and the public in the long term, and that’s having a quality
teacher in a great school for every child,” said Starr.
A slim majority of respondents say they disapprove of President Trump’s
performance in the area of education policy. Looking head to the election, six in 10 respondents said education will be “extremely or very
important” in deciding how to vote, including a quarter who call it
“extremely important.” Among parents, that number rises to 7 in 10. For
communities of color, education will especially important as they cast
their vote. Seventy-nine percent of Black and 71% of Latino
respondents said it was highly important issue, compared to 52% of white
respondents.
Additional highlights from the 2020 PDK survey: CONTINUE
READING: PDK Poll: Majority of Public Wants Greater Federal Support for
Education