Hey, America, what do you think of public schools?

Asked and answered, if you accept the results of the annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll dubbed “What Americans say about public education,” released Wednesday. Some fun highlights:

Most Americans say the state – not federal or local governments – should handle education issues of curriculum, accountability, financing and standards. This at a time when the feds are pushing national standards in core subjects, and Pennsylvania still puts the bulk of the money burden on most local districts despite several years of regular increases in state funding.

Most Americans who have any opinion about the law known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB) view it unfavorably, and the percent of people with such negative attitudes has climbed from below 15 percent in 2003 to nearly 50 percent this year. Hardly a surprise when you know the mechanics of NCLB, which took effect in 2002 and has set steadily tougher goals in mandated reading and math tests. The higher the goals, the more problems schools have in meeting them. The more problems, the more grumbling from schools and parents.

Most Americans give President Barack Obama’s performance regarding public education middling to failing grades, and those who approve are dwindling fast. Last year, 45 percent of those polled gave him an A or B grade in education. This year it was 34 percent. Frankly, the man hasn’t done much education-wise, which alone may merit the declining opinion. His biggest accomplishment, the freshly completed “Race To The Top” grant program that doled out more than $4 million to 11 states and the District of Columbia, has been controversial and arguably divisive.

It’s hardly a shock that only 18 percent of those polled gave public schools a grade of A or B nationwide, yet 49 percent gave those high marks to schools in their community, and a whopping 77 percent gave the same grades to the school their oldest child attends. Such schizophrenic opinion is pandemic on many issues. People love to hate institutions like schools or medicine on broad scale while praising their personal experience.

Some opinions mixed

Here’s another tidbit that could be viewed as contradictory. Asked if teacher pay should be based on a standard scale or tied to the quality of work, 71 percent picked the latter, suggesting people overwhelmingly want teacher merit pay. Yet asked what should be the primary purpose of evaluating a teacher, only 13 percent said it should be to establish their salary based on skill. The majority, 60 percent, said the evaluations should be used to help teachers become better teachers.

Four decades of data show how our fears have changed. From 1970 through 1975, lack of discipline was the biggest concern about schools, with lack of funding second and use of drugs third. Discipline stayed on top through 1985, but drugs climbed to second and funding hit the bottom. Drugs hit the highest point (no pun intended) in 1990, with nearly 40 percent saying it was the biggest concern, but dropped dramatically to third place by 1995, then sank close to zero by 2010. For at least 10 years, lack of funding has been the biggest concern and growing quickly.

Like most opinion polls, this should be taken with enough salt to lure a deer. But with state and federal red ink continuing to threaten local school budgets, and another big federal “reform” movement looming, decision makers would be wise to listen to what the public is saying.

About the Author

Mark Guydish covers education for the Times Leader. Reach him at (570) 970-7161 or mguydish@timesleader.com.

A West Hazleton native, I worked as a service technician repairing electronic mailing and shipping systems, a bike shop owner and an Emergency Medical Technician (among other jobs) before landing a reporter job at the Times Leader Hazleton Bureau in 1995. I started by covering primarily politics in Hazleton City and outlying municipalities, eventually became "social issues" team leader in the Wilkes-Barre office with the accent on education, and headed the Hazleton Bureau for a spell before returning to full-time reporting, my preferred position. I'm an avid cyclist and rode across the country in 1990, a trip of more than 5,000 miles from New Jersey to Seattle and down the coast to San Francisco. Years in the Boy Scouts made me a life long backpacker and camper, and I've yet to find a better way to enjoy the quiet lure of winter snow than cross country skiing.

Mark also writes a regular blog for timesleader.com.

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