Parents overwhelmingly back decisions public school leaders are making to navigate the pandemic and give teachers top marks, according to new polling that also shows perceptions of teachers unions are at a record-high despite the disruptions so far this school year.
The poll, which was commissioned by the 1.7-million member American Federation of Teachers and conducted in mid-December by Hart Research Associates and Lake Research Partners, found that 72% of parents say their schools provide excellent or good-quality education, and 78% say they are pleased with the quality and performance of teachers.
Despite disruptions that have sent students back and forth between classrooms and remote-learning situations, the poll shows that teachers unions are seen by parents as a more positive force in education today than prior to the pandemic. In particular, Black parents and parents of children in urban school systems say that teachers unions have played an overwhelmingly positive role and blame instead the changing nature of the virus for education difficulties during the pandemic.
In fact, 78% of all parents express satisfaction with how their children’s schools handled the pandemic, including 82% of parents in urban school districts, 77% of Black parents and 74% of Hispanic parents. In addition, 83% of all parents say they are satisfied with the schools’ efforts to keep students and staff safe.
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“This polling shows the virus is our enemy, not each other,” AFT President Randi Weingarten said in a statement. “Parents are saying teachers are heroes for their efforts during this pandemic and they deeply value how their public schools have gone above and beyond to help their kids recover and thrive.”
“Some on the far right have tried to exploit this crisis to usher in a shameful new chapter of teacher bashing, but they’re failing dismally,” she continued. “Parents are public school proud, and they are standing with the community, teachers and their unions – not only in defense of public education but also to address inadequate school funding, students’ progress during COVID, lower class size, and the conditions necessary for academic recovery, including enough counselors and nurses and adequate teacher pay.”
The new poll also shows that parents do not believe schools reopened too slowly or waited too long to resume in-person instruction: 22% of parents say that schools waited too long, compared to 48% who say that schools struck a good balance between safety and learning and 26% who say they moved too quickly to reopen buildings.
The findings mirror other public polling conducted over the past year that found small majorities of parents support pivoting to remote learning during surges in coronavirus, do not believe schools reopened too slowly and back safety measures like mask requirements.
In addition, the new poll shows that 48% of parents feel that teachers unions have a positive effect on the quality of education provided by public schools, compared to 17% who say they have a negative effect – a 23-point jump since 2013.
Notably, the poll was conducted at the outset of the omicron surge but prior to it disrupting thousands of schools across the country as they tried to return students to classrooms in January after winter break. At one point, as many as 10% of public schools – more than 7,000 – were forced to temporarily close or return to virtual learning due to mounting coronavirus infections that left schools short-staffed and caused attendance to plummet among students.
As it stands, roughly 4,000 schools continue to experience disruptions – though the most recent analysis from the school tracking site Burbio concluded that the newest figures signal a sustained downward trend.
The poll was also conducted prior to the stand-off between the Chicago Teachers Union and city officials over how to safely operate in-person school during the height of the omicron surge there – a disagreement that lead to a work stoppage that forced the third-largest school district in the country to cancel classes for 350,000 students for five days.
The findings come as GOP strategists are driving a narrative that teachers unions used their political power over Democrats to support school closures – an attempt to energize their base ahead of the 2022 midterms elections and woo back to the Republican Party suburban mothers turned off by the Trump administration.
They’re also digging in their heels on culture war issues that impact teachers directly, like critical race theory and the rights of transgender students to compete in sports and use the bathroom of the gender with which they identify.
Republican governors, including Ron DeSantis of Florida, Doug Ducey of Arizona, Mike DeWine of Ohio, Glenn Youngkin of Virginia and others, have capitalized on such narratives. Most recently, Youngkin announced that his administration created a tip line for parents who wished to report educators and school leaders who are acting objectionably and teaching “divisive” subjects.
“We’re asking for folks to send us reports and observations,” Youngkin said. “We’re going to make sure we catalogue it all.”
“That gives us further, further ability to make sure we’re rooting it out.”
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