2006 Public Opinion Survey on Education in Indiana Jonathan A. Plucker Terry E. Spradlin Jason S. Zapf Rosanne W. Chien Presented to the Indiana State Board of Education January 3, 2007

2 Center for Evaluation and Education Policy (CEEP) CEEP promotes and supports rigorous program evaluation and policy research primarily, but not exclusively, for education, human service and non-profit organizations. In the area of K-12 education policy, CEEP’s mission is to help inform, influence and shape sound policy through effective, nonpartisan research and analysis.

3 Need for a Survey No comprehensive, nonpartisan survey of public opinion on Indiana education issues in recent memory Policymakers in other states find such surveys to be very helpful Measure the impact of the changes in the education policy environment on the attitudes and perceptions of respondents –E.g., Gov. Daniels completing his second year in office, improving state finances, full implementation of several new laws and programs intended to improve public education Year 4 survey conducted to identify changes in the attitudes and perceptions of Hoosiers since 2003 and gauge opinions on K-12 education policy issues likely to be addressed during the 2007 session of the Indiana General Assembly

4 Telephone Survey Sample 612 residents of Indiana, all 18+ years old Conducted in November 2006 Random Digit Dialing (RDD) –Includes both listed and unlisted numbers Minimum and maximum quotas for county, age, gender, and race/ethnicity to ensure a representative sample of these variables –Gender: 45.9% male, 54.1% female –Race: 80.3% white, 8.3% African American, 6.1% Hispanic State and regional results are weighted proportionately to the Indiana population for gender and race Phone survey and data collection conducted by Stone Research Services

5 Survey Statistics Ratio of initial refusals to households successfully screened (1929/793) was 2.4:1, which is average for RDD samples. Overall sampling error of +/- 4%

6 Survey Development Questions developed from a review of: –Surveys in other states (AL, CA, DE, IL) and the ISTA poll –38 th Annual Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools –Issues being discussed by Indiana policymakers –Anticipated “hot topics” in Indiana (e.g., full-day kindergarten, school funding, ISTEP+ testing, vouchers, and teacher compensation)

7 Item Revision Survey questions have been reviewed by: √Project staff √Indiana policymakers and educational leaders representing a breadth of perspectives and ideologies √Stone Research Services

Summary of Year 4 Results

9 Public School Quality (Q1) 56% of Hoosiers said that public schools in Indiana provide an excellent or good education v. 31% fair and 10% poor Only 39% of non-white respondents say that public schools provide an excellent or good education v. 60% of white respondents 41% of non-white respondents said that schools provide a fair education and 16% of non-white respondents said poor No significant difference between respondents with school-aged children and those without school-aged children 63% of Southern IN residents rate schools excellent or good; highest among the three regions of the state

10 Public School Quality Over Past 5 Years (Q2) 27% said that public schools have gotten better in the past 5 years, 44% the same, and 19% worse 26% (better) v. 23% (worse) with school-aged children 27% v. 19% without school-aged children 30% of Southern Indiana residents say schools have gotten better v. 29% of Central IN, and 23% of Northern IN residents

11 Community School Quality (Q3) 65% of Hoosiers said that schools in their community provide and excellent or good education v. 34% fair or poor 66% (excellent/good) v. 34% (worse) with school-aged children 64% v. 34% without school- aged children 69% of white residents say schools in their community provide an excellent or good education v. 48% of minority residents

12 Community School Quality Over Past 5 Years (Q4) 32% of Hoosiers said that schools in their community have gotten better, 46% the same, and 15% who believe they have gotten worse 37% (better) v. 14% (worse) with school-aged children 29% v. 18% without school- aged children 35% of Central IN residents say their community schools have gotten better v. 31% of Southern IN, and 29% of Northern IN residents

13 Impact of Spending on Quality of Education (Q5) 80% indicated that the amount of money spent on public education affects the quality of education a lot or somewhat, v. 12% who indicate a little and 5% who said not at all 80% (a lot/somewhat) v. 13% (not at all) with school-aged children 79% v. 12% without school- aged children 81% of white respondents v. 76% of minority residents

14 Is Public School Funding Sufficient? (Q6A) 61% of residents said the level of funding for public schools is not enough, 26% said it is enough, and 8% said the level of funding is more than enough Men, individuals 65 and older, residents in Southern Indiana, and whites were the most likely to say funding levels are enough or more than enough, although all such responses were less than 50% Women, residents in Central Indiana, and minority citizens were the most likely to say funding levels are insufficient

15 Is Current Per Pupil Spending Sufficient? (Q6B) When informed that the average per pupil expenditure was $10,000/student, 45% of residents said this amount was not enough, 35% enough, and 12% more than enough Females, college graduates, citizens of Central Indiana, and non-white residents most frequently responded that this amount was not enough 2006

16 Expenditures on Facilities & Equipment (Q7) Majority of Hoosiers (43%) expressed view spending is sufficient on facilities and equipment 22% said expenditures are far too much or more than sufficient 23% said expenditures are less than sufficient or far too little

17 State Funding for Voluntary Pre- School for At-Risk Children (Q8) Vast majority of Hoosiers (82%) expressed support state funding for pre- school programs for at- risk children 85% with school aged children v. 80% without 82% of white residents v. 81% of minority residents indicate support

18 Mandatory Kindergarten (Q9) Vast majority of Hoosiers (75%) support mandatory kindergarten for all students 78% with school-aged children v. 74% without 83% of Southern IN residents, 74% of Central and Northern IN residents

19 State-Funded Full-Day Kindergarten (Q10) Vast majority of Hoosiers (75%) support state-funded full- kindergarten 78% with school-aged children v. 71% without 82% of minority residents indicate support v. 72% of white residents 80% of Central IN residents, 75% of Southern IN, and 65% of Northern IN residents 2006

20 Require All School Districts to Offer Full-Day Kindergarten (Q11) Vast majority of Hoosiers (76%) support mandating school corporations to provide full- kindergarten 80% with school-aged children v. 74% without 86% of minority residents indicate support v. 74% of white residents 80% of Central IN residents, 74% of Southern IN, and 71% of Northern IN residents indicate support 2006

21 Require All Students to Attend Full-Day Kindergarten (Q12) 58% of Hoosiers support mandatory full-kindergarten 64% with school-aged children v. 55% without 75% of minority residents indicate support v. 54% of white residents 62% of Central IN residents, 60% of Southern IN, and 52% of Northern IN residents indicate support 2006

22 Increase Taxes to Support Full-Day Kindergarten (Q13) 61% of Hoosiers support increasing taxes to fund full-day kindergarten 60% with school-aged children v. 62% without 65% of minority residents indicated support v. 61% of white residents 73% with a bachelor’s degree or higher indicate support, 60% with some college, and 51% with HS or less

23 Hoosiers Somewhat or Very Familiar With … (Q14, 21A)

24 ISTEP+ and School Performance (Q15) 71% of Indiana residents believe ISTEP+ has improved schools to some extent v. 25% not at all No difference between residents with school-aged children and those without (both 71%)

25 ISTEP+ Hold Schools Accountable for Student Achievement (Q16) 72% of Hoosiers strongly or somewhat strongly agreed that ISTEP+ holds schools accountable for student achievement 76% of respondents with school-aged children strongly agreed or agreed v. 69% without 76% of minority respondents also strongly agreed or agreed v. 71% of white residents

26 ISTEP+ Gives Helpful Information About School Performance (Q17) 67% of Hoosiers indicated that ISTEP+ provides helpful information to parents about school performance, down slightly from 73% in % of respondents with school-aged children strongly agreed or agreed v. 63% without 72% of minority respondents also strongly agreed or agreed v. 65% of white residents

27 ISTEP+ Gives Helpful Information About Student Performance (Q18) 73% of Hoosiers indicated that ISTEP+ provides parents helpful information about student performance 75% of respondents with school-aged children strongly agreed or agreed v. 71% without 75% of minority respondents also strongly agreed or agreed v. 72% of white residents 2006

28 ISTEP+ Given in Fall or Spring (Q19) 75% of Hoosiers indicated that the ISTEP+ should be given toward the end of the school year, up from 70% in % of citizens preferred the start of the year and 11% felt the timing makes no difference

29 Options for Schools on Academic Probation (Q20) 61% of Indiana residents stated a preference for additional assistance to help improve student achievement 18% would support state financial support to parents to offset part or all of the tuition for a private school 15% preferred giving parents public school transfer authority Nationally

30 Creation of More Charter Schools (Q21B) 47% of Hoosiers support the creation of more charter schools, down from 56% in 2004 and 54% in 2003 Those in opposition to charters has increased from 20% in 2003 to 34% in % of those with children in school favor more charter schools v. 46% of those without 67% of minority residents favor more charter schools v. 43% of whites

31 Charter School With Majority of Instruction Provided Online (Q21C) 76% of Indiana residents oppose a charter school with the majority of instruction provided over the Internet 84% of those with a college degree or more oppose v. 65% of those with HS or less 85% of those who earn $50K or more v. 64% of those who earn less than $50K per year No significant differences by race, gender, or state region of residence 2006

32 Teacher Quality (Q22) 71% rated the quality of public school teachers as excellent or good v. 23% who rated teacher quality as fair and 4% poor 75% (excellent/good) v. 19% (fair) and 4% (poor) with school-aged children 68% v. 29% without school- aged children 74% of white residents (excellent/good) v. 58% of minority residents

33 Teacher Compensation (Q23) 72% favor paying highly qualified teachers higher salaries to teach in schools identified as needing improvement or that have a high percentage of students living in poverty 70% of males favor v. 74% of females 77% of those with a college degree or more favor such a compensation system v. 67% of those with HS or less

34 Increases in Teacher Compensation (Q24) 71% favor basing increases in teacher salaries on a combination of student performance, years of service, or training 73% of whites favor v. 62% of minority residents 66% of males v. 75% of females

35 Hoosiers That Know a Great Deal or Some About … (Q25, 28) 2003 Indiana2004 Indiana 2005 Indiana 2006 Nationally 2006 Indiana

36 Impact of NCLB on Schools (Q26) 40% of Hoosiers in 2006 indicated NCLB is helping the performance of schools compared to 26% nationally 43% of those with school- aged children v. 37% without 50% of minority v. 38% of whites Nationally

37 Judging School Performance (Q27) 73% of Hoosiers favor using a combination of fixed standards and improvement in number of students passing the ISTEP+ to judge school performance

38 Impact of PL221 on Schools (Q29) Of those expressing familiarity with PL 221, 48% indicate it is helping the performance of schools 44% of those with school- aged children v. 50% without 58% of minority v. 46% of whites 2006

39 Importance of Achievement Gap (Q30) 94% of respondents indicated closing the achievement gap is very or somewhat important Non-white respondents indicated greater agreement that issue very important: –Non-white: 83% –White: 68% 2004 Indiana 2005 Indiana 2006 Nationally 2006 Indiana

40 Cause of Achievement Gap (Q31) 76% of Hoosiers believe that the achievement gap is due to factors other than schooling, such as family income or parental educational attainment Non-white and white respondents differ regarding the attribution to factors other than schooling: –White: 79% –Non-white: 64% 2004 Indiana 2005 Indiana 2006 Nationally 2006 Indiana

41 Closing the Achievement Gap (Q32) 54% of Indiana residents believe it is the public schools’ responsibility to close the achievement gap; 39% believe it is not 52% of non-white residents v. 55% of white residents 2004 Indiana 2005 Indiana 2006 Nationally 2006 Indiana

42 Methods for Closing the Achievement Gap (Q33)

43 General Conclusions Indiana adults generally have a positive attitude about public schools and teachers, especially in their own community. However, citizens continue see room for improvement. Minority residents generally have lower levels of satisfaction about public schools. Trends on multi-year questions are generally consistent and fall within the sampling error of the survey.

Survey CEEP will explore continuation of the Public Opinion Survey on Education in Indiana in If continued, questions will continue to be reviewed and refined.

45 CEEP Contact Information: Jonathan Plucker, Director Terry Spradlin, Assoc. Director of Education Policy 509 East Third Street Bloomington, Indiana Fax: IU School of Education