UT/TT Poll: Education is pretty good, but Texans have some suggestions
Texans don't like the standardized tests required of public education students, and they support a number of changes from higher spending to more pre-K classes, according to the new University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll.
More Texans than not believe the quality of the state’s public education system is pretty good, but it’s not a majority point of view, according to the latest University of Texas/Texas Tribune Poll.
While 47 percent said schools are either excellent or good, 42 percent said they are either not very good or terrible. Excellent and terrible rankings were even, with each at 8 percent. Texans who have kids in schools have a higher regard for the quality of public education in the state: 56 percent rated the schools excellent or good, while 40 percent said they were not very good or terrible.
The most effective way to improve the schools, according to 21 percent of Texans, would be to cut the number of standardized tests students have to take. Increasing funding for public schools was the second-most-common answer, followed by creating a school voucher system and increasing the pay of public school teachers, which were tied.
Emily Albracht
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“Nobody likes standardized tests, and everybody wants to give them more money,” said Daron Shaw, who teaches government at the University of Texas at Austin and co-directs the poll. That first option, he noted, would cost no money. “If you’re a legislator and you want to make people happy, reduce the number of tests.”
He said the answers also indicate the importance of education among voters. “These are markers for people’s general belief that if you commit more money, it shows your seriousness for an issue,” Shaw said. “These answers are UT/TT Poll: Education is pretty good, but Texans have some suggestions | The Texas Tribune:
