What Do Parents Actually Think About Schools?: It’s Not What You Think

Public education is under attack.  

If you pay attention to the news, you’d think that a majority of American parents are in a frenzy over critical race theory and pandemic school policy.  As Doug Porter and I have both noted in this space, books are being banned and rightwing politicians are encouraging students and parents to report educators for “divisive activity” of any sort.  The pitchforks must surely be out, right?   

Or maybe not.  

Recently, my national union, the American Federation of Teachers, commissioned a poll by Hart Research which finds conflicting data with regard to the mainstream media narrative on schools.  

More specifically, the polling reveals that rather than being upset with their kids’ schools, most American parents have a high level of satisfaction, with 72% of them saying that schools provide students with an “excellent or good quality education.”  Only 7% think the education their children are receiving is “not good or poor.”  

In terms of teachers, 78% of parents think they are doing a good or excellent job and those positive numbers are solid across racial lines as well.  79% of parents recognize that teaching during Covid has been a “hard job” and 80% of them believe that teachers have “made an extra effort to help students during the pandemic.”  Educators also received very high marks for subject matter expertise, caring for students’ individual needs, and communicating with parents about academics.  

Surprisingly, for those who might believe what they see on Fox News, 78% of parents expressed satisfaction with the way schools have navigated the pandemic.  48% think they struck the right balance concerning reopening with 26% thinking it was too quick.  Despite the pervasive reporting on angry, protesting parents, only 22% think the schools opened too slowly.  

As for the dreaded teachers’ unions, their numbers are up from previous surveys with 48% of parents saying they are a positive influence and only 17% viewing them negatively with the rest in between. Regarding disruptions of the school year, a mere 14% blame unions for the turmoil of the last two years and about half of parents say it was “beyond anyone’s control.”  

Parents identified the biggest problems in American schools as staff shortages, students falling behind, lack of social interaction, inadequate funding, and low teacher pay.  Critical race theory, mask mandates, and other well publicized bogeymen simply weren’t on the list.  

While it would be unwise to read too much into one poll, what is clear is that the problem facing public schools may have less to do with a parental backlash against ideological indoctrination or pandemic public health policy than with the weaponized narrative being employed by the American right. 

 The tragic situation facing public schools is that despite continued strong public support, the pandemic stress, underpay, and relentless political attacks are driving good teachers, administrators, and board members out of education and further threatening the future of public education in this country.  

What American educators need is not yet another dose of absurd culture war but better funding, wrap-around support services to help take care of the whole student, thoroughgoing academic freedom, and a renewal of respect for the professional integrity of our teachers.  

As we slowly creep our way out of the pandemic, let’s stop dragging down schools, and recognize their role as the cornerstone of our democracy.  

They play a crucial role in healing what ails us.