Very Important New Survey Data on NCLB

[Bob Schaeffer <bobschaeffer@earthlink.net>]

Survey: Parent Support for 'No Child Left Behind' Is Thin, 
Three-Quarters Oppose Fund Cut-Off If Their Child's School 'Fails'
Wednesday February 11, 1:30 pm ET

Little Backing Found for Additional Federal Funds for NCLB 
Implementation; 'High-Stakes Testing' Among the Topics That Cause 
Support for NCLB to Melt

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Most American parents who know about 
"No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) school reforms like the concept, but they 
also would oppose implementation of any of its punitive terms in their 
own child's school, according to the first national opinion survey since 
NCLB implementation to zero in specifically on what the parents of 
school-age children think about the two-year-old initiative. Conducted 
among 699 parents by Opinion Research Corporation (ORC), the survey is 
sponsored by Results for America (http://www.ResultsForAmerica.org), a 
project of the nonprofit Civil Society Institute.

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According to the RFA survey, a third of all parents (34 percent) who 
have heard of NCLB see the school reforms as "punishing schools for 
failure instead of rewarding them for success," a quarter view it as 
"limiting learning by students" (25 percent), while fewer than half (46 
percent) associate NCLB with "improving learning." The RFA survey also 
found almost no parental support (10 percent) for increased spending on 
the increasingly controversial school reform plan. This is true even 
though there is widespread awareness (78 percent) of NCLB among parents, 
with two-thirds (68 percent v. 22 percent) of the NCLB-aware parents 
expressing support for the concept of the school reforms.

What drives this seemingly schizophrenic view of NCLB among parents?

Many parents have major concerns when the focus shifts from the abstract 
concept of NCLB to the real-world specifics of the reforms, including 
high- stakes testing (only 51 percent support, with just 17 percent 
expressing "strong" support and 33 percent "somewhat" supportive) and 
taking funds from schools deemed to be "failing," particularly those of 
their children (only 19 percent supporting such a move). Significantly, 
most parents would prefer to see any additional federal education funds 
spent on smaller class sizes (52 percent), not enforcement or further 
implementation of NCLB (10 percent).

"This survey makes it clear that concerns about 'No Child Left Behind' 
go up the closer it gets to the homes of parents and the schools 
attended by their children," said Civil Society Institute President Pam 
Solo. "What you end up with is lukewarm backing for NCLB that resembles 
what Mark Twain said about the Platte River: it's a mile wide and an 
inch deep. Parents don't much like the idea of high-stakes testing on 
which everything rides on the outcome of dubious quizzes or the notion 
that their own child's school could be branded a 'failure' and penalized."

Opinion Research Corporation Senior Research Manager Wayne Russum said: 
"These survey results indicate that, while American parents are 
supportive of the concept of 'No Child Left Behind' for America's 
schools, the level of support melts away significantly when they are 
asked to consider what this could mean specifically in the context of 
their child's school. The lack of intensity in the support of NCLB seems 
most apparent in the very low level of backing for spending additional 
federal funds to implement or enforce NCLB. It is worth noting that this 
does not appear to be a political or ethnic phenomenon; the seemingly 
schizophrenic view of NCLB's conceptual and 'real world' terms cuts 
across most demographic and political groupings."

"The survey mirrors our experience with parents and their concerns about 
NCLB," said Parents for Public Schools Executive Director Ken Rolling. 
"In our work with 25 local chapters in 15 different states, we've found 
that parents like the intention of NCLB -- no one disagrees with its 
goal of a better education for our children. But what they don't like is 
the implementation when they hear the details of how NCLB really works."

SURVEY HIGHLIGHTS

   * More than three in four parents (78 percent) have heard of NCLB.
     Most parents who have heard of NCLB support the concept (68
     percent v. 22 percent), as other surveys have shown.
   * Fewer than half (46 percent) of parents aware of NCLB see it as
     improving learning, while 34 percent perceive it as "punishing
     schools for failure instead of rewarding them for success."
     One-quarter (25 percent) see NCLB as actually "limiting learning
     by students."
   * Parents are split down the middle on using "high-stakes testing"
     as a component of NCLB. After being read a neutrally worded
     definition of high- stakes testing, nearly half (45 percent)
     oppose such testing. The 51 percent support level for such testing
     is lukewarm at best, with only 17 percent evincing strong support
     and 33 percent limiting their support to "somewhat."
   * Nearly three quarters (73 percent) say they would not support
     withholding funds from their child's school for failing under
     NCLB, with only 19 percent willing to support such a move.
     Supporters of NCLB are just as opposed to withholding of federal
     funds from their own schools (72 percent), and 61 percent of
     Republican parents join most independents (84 percent) and
     Democrats (79 percent) in opposition to withholding of such funds.
   * Given the chance for additional federal money for their child's
     school, more spending on NCLB ranks among the lowest parental
     priorities. When parents are presented with the question: "If
     there was more federal money available for your school, which one
     of the following would you want it to go to?," only 10 percent
     picked "implementing the No Child Left Behind Act" from a list of
     five choices, while half (52 percent) would put the money towards
     "provid(ing) smaller classes." About one parent in ten would use
     additional federal monies to "restore or expand arts learning
     programs" (12 percent), "increase access to after school programs"
     (11 percent) and "increase professional development opportunities
     for teachers" (10 percent). Even among supporters of NCLB, only 12
     percent would direct additional funds to implementing "No Child
     Left Behind," as would comparable proportions of Democrats (8
     percent), Republicans (10 percent) and independents (13 percent).
   * Among parents, the #1 use of federal funds in school is to
     "provide technical assistance to states and local school districts
     to promote new and more effective approaches to teaching and
     learning." Given five choices for the "most appropriate role for
     the federal government when it comes to education," 27 percent of
     parents say the Washington lawmakers "should provide technical
     assistance to states and local school districts to promote new and
     more effective approaches to teaching and learning." One in five
     (20 percent) believe the federal government "should turn the money
     over to the states and let them decide what to do with it," while
     the same percentage see the federal government's role as
     "assist(ing) local communities in balancing education spending
     between school districts." Only 13 percent believe "it should only
     give funds to local school districts that meet federal government
     standards," while 16 percent feel that "the federal government
     should not be involved in local education decisions."

For a full set of the RFA survey topline results, go to 
http://www.ResultsForAmerica.org.

SURVEY METHODOLOGY

A series of questions were asked across three waves of CARAVAN®, ORC 
International's twice-weekly national survey. The purpose of the 
research was to gain an understanding of the views of American parents 
on "No Child Left Behind" school reforms. Results are based on telephone 
interviews conducted among a sample of 699 parents of school children 
(kindergarten through the 12th grade). Respondents were identified from 
a probability sample of 3,047 adults 18 years old and older (1,525 men 
and 1,522 women) living in private households in the continental United 
States. Interviewing was completed at ORC's Central Telephone Facilities 
during the period of January 22-February 1, 2004.

Completed interviews of the 3,047 adults were weighted by four 
variables: age, sex, geographic region and race, to ensure reliable and 
accurate representation of the total adult population. The margin of 
error at a 95 percent confidence level is plus or minus four percentage 
points for the sample of 699 parents. Smaller sub-groups will have 
larger error margins.

ABOUT RESULTS FOR AMERICA

Results for America is a project of the nonprofit Civil Society 
Institute, which is based in Newton, Massachusetts. The mission of the 
Institute is to serve as a catalyst for change by creating 
problem-solving interactions among people, and between communities, 
government and business, that can help to improve society. Visit Civil 
Society Institute on the Web at http://www.civilsocietyinstitute.org.

RFA seeks to shape and tap the tremendous amount of community-level 
knowledge, experience and innovative action that could solve America's 
problems in four key areas:

   * Great Kids, Great Schools, Great Communities. Results for America
     supports investing in public schools, making sure parents have
     more of a say in their schools and creating conditions that will
     lead to learning and success for every child.
   * Healthy Families, Healthy Economy, Healthy America. Results for
     America supports affordable health care and prescription drugs. It
     also supports a commitment to biomedical technologies and
     breakthrough treatments and cures for life-threatening illnesses
     that affect millions of us.
   * Clean Air, Clean Energy, Bright Future. Results for America
     supports reducing our debilitating dependence on oil and fossil
     fuels and making sensible investments in alternative energy sources.
   * Rational Foreign Policy, A Safer World. Results for America
     supports a rational foreign policy that works in concert with
     global organizations not in opposition to them. It also supports
     restoring America to its place in the world community as a nation
     respected and admired rather than mistrusted and feared.

ABOUT PARENTS FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Parents for Public Schools is a national organization of community-based 
chapters working to strengthen public schools through broad-based 
enrollment. Invigorated by a diverse membership, our proactive 
involvement helps public schools attract all families in a community by 
making sure all schools effectively serve all children. We believe that 
quality public education is vital to our democracy and to America's 
future. For more information, go to http://www.parents4publicschools.com/.

EDITOR'S NOTE: A streaming audio replay of this news conference will be 
available by 6 p.m. EST on February 11, 2004, at 
http://www.ResultsForAmerica.org.