Knowledge of Schools Questions: Section 1

KNOWLEDGE OF SCHOOLS
Scroll down or click on "Question" to see the poll results for that question.

Section 1: Knowledge of Schools

Awareness of National Issues
Question 1: Here are some national education issues that are currently being discussed and debated. As I read off each issue, would you tell me whether you have heard or read about that issue: a great deal, a fair amount, not very much, or not at all?
1. The amount of student violence in the public schools, including possible ways to deal with it.
2. A proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution permitting spoken prayer in the public schools.
3. National testing programs to measure the academic achievement of public school students.
4. Public school choice, that is, allowing public school children to attend any public school of their own or their parents' choice.
5. Private school choice; that is, allowing parents to send their children to private or church-related schools at taxpayers' expense.
6. The federal and state governments' efforts to raise achievement standards of public schools nationwide.
7. Providing federal funds for education to the states in the form of "block grants."
8. The debate over what should be taught in U.S. history courses in the public schools.
9. Charter schools, which would permit some public schools to operate independently, free from certain state restrictions.
(Asked in: 1995.)
[Code: 218-KnoAX-1]

Question 2: This card lists various issues related to public education in this country that have been discussed in the news recently. Would you read off, by letter, all of those issues, if any, that your have heard or read something about?
1. Requiring sex education in the public schools.
2. Permitting organized prayer in public schools.
3. Requiring higher standards in the public schools.
4. Recent efforts by the state government to improve public school education.
5. Recent efforts by the federal government to improve public school education.
6. Requiring higher achievement of public school students.
7. Increasing the number of required courses in school and reducing the number of electives.
8. Permitting parents more say about which local school their children attend.
9. Teaching about the role played by religion in the history of this country and the world.
10. Transferring the authority and responsibility for public education from the federal government to the state governments .
11.Establishing national awards for high-performing public schools and for high-achieving public school students.
12. Proposals to provide school vouchers to public school parents that could be used for any public, private, or church-related school.
13. Introducing required courses in character education to develop personal values and ethical behavior .
(Asked in: 1987.)
[Code: 219-KnoAa-2]

Concern About Issues
Question 3: Which of these issues worry or concern you?
1. Requiring sex education in the public schools.
2. Permitting organized prayer in public schools.
3. Requiring higher standards in the public schools.
4. Recent efforts by the state government to improve public school education.
5. Recent efforts by the federal government to improve public school education.
6. Requiring higher achievement of public school students.
7. Increasing the number of required courses in school and reducing the number of electives.
8. Permitting parents more say about which local school their children attend.
9. Teaching about the role played by religion in the history of this country and the world.
10. Transferring the authority and responsibility for public education from the federal government to the state governments.
11. Establishing national awards for high-performing public schools and for high-achieving public school students.
12. Proposals to provide school vouchers to public school parents that could be used for any public, private, or church-related school.
13. Introducing required courses in character education to develop personal values and ethical behavior.
(Asked in: 1987.)
[Code: 220-KnoCb-3]

Information About Education
Question 4: Have you read any book in the last year that deals with education? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 229-KnoIa-4]

Question 5: What is the name of the book(s)? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 233-KnoIb-5]

Local School Personnel: Principal (Elementary)
Question 6: Do you happen to know the name of the principal of the elementary school in your neighborhood? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 225-KnoLP-6]

Local School Personnel: Principal (High School)
Question 7: Do you know the name of the principal of the high school attended by children in your neighborhood? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 227-KnoLP-7]

Local School Personnel: School Board
Question 8: Now, a few questions about the local school board. First, do you happen to know the name of the president of the board? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 231-KnoLS-8]

Local School Personnel: Superintendent
Question 9: Do you happen to know the name of the superintendent of schools? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 226-KnoLS-9]

Local Schools: Desire for More Information
Question 10: Would you like to know more about the public schools in this community? (Asked in: 1969, 1970.)
[Code: 222-KnoLD-10]

Local Schools: Extent of Interest
Question 11: How much interest do you have in what is going on in the local public schools? (Asked in: 1991.)
[Code: 236-KnoLE-11]

Local Schools: Extent of Knowledge
Question 12: How much do you know about the local schools, quite a lot, some, or very little? (Asked in: 1969, 1983, 1991, 2007.)
[Code: 230-KnoLE-12]

Question 13: Would you say that you are well-informed, fairly well-informed, or not well-informed about the advantages and disadvantages of the various local public schools? (Asked in: 1987.)
[Code: 223-KnoLE-13]

Question 14: Would you say you were well informed, fairly well informed, or not well informed about the local public school situation? (Asked in: 1987, 1998, 2009.)
[Code: 240-KnoLE-14]

Local Schools: High School Dropouts
Question 15: Are there many high school dropouts in this community? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 224-KnoLH-15]

Local Schools: Knowledge of Cost per Child
Question 16: What is your guess as to the cost per child per year in the public schools of your community? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 234-KnoLK-16]

Local Schools: Knowledge of Curriculum
Question 17: Would you say that you are well-informed, fairly well-informed, or not well-informed about what is being taught, what should be taught, or what should not be taught in the local public schools? (Asked in: 1987.)
[Code: 221-KnoLK-17]

Local Schools: Shortage of Space
Question 18: Do you think there is a shortage of classroom space in this community? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 228-KnoLS-18]

Media Coverage
Question 19: Do you think the news media (newspapers, TV, and radio) give a fair and accurate picture of the public schools in this community, or not? (Asked in: 1977, 2009.)
[Code: 237-KnoMX-19]

Question 20: In your opinion, how could the media (newspapers, TV, and radio) improve their reporting of education in the local schools? (Asked in: 1977.)
[Code: 238-KnoMX-20]

Question 21: Generally speaking, do you hear more good stories or bad stories about teachers in the news media? (Asked in: 2011.)
[Code: 910-KnoMX-21]

Question 22: Some newspapers are releasing information about how the students of individual teachers perform on standardized tests. Do you favor or oppose the release of this information to the public? (Asked in: 2011, 2013.)
[Code: 914-KnoMX-22]

Question 23: Should the performance reviews of the following professionals be released to the public? How about for doctors? Teachers? Business leaders? Police officers? (Asked in: 2013.)
[Code: 954-KnoX-23]

Involvement in the Schools

Question 24: In the last 12 months, have you voted in an election that has affected your community's schools? (Asked in: 2012.)
[Code: 939-KnoIX-24]

Question 25: In the last 12 months, have you visited any public school? (Asked in: 2012.)
[Code: 940-KnoIX-25]

Question 26: In the last 12 months, have you visited any public school? (Asked in: 2012.)
[Code: 941-KnoIX-26]

Question 27: Do you know at least one public school teacher very well? (Asked in: 2012.)
[Code: 942-KnoIX-27]

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POLL RESULTS

Year: 1995
	A Great Deal %	A Fair Amount %	Not Very Much %	Not At All %	Don't Know %
The amount of student violence in the public schools, including possible ways to deal with it	56	27	11	6	*
A proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution permitting spoken prayer in the public schools	44	33	16	7	*
National testing programs to measure the academic achievement of public school students	25	38	23	14	*
Public school choice; that is, allowing public school children to attend any public school of their own or their parents' choice	23	30	25	22	*
Private school choice, that is, allowing parents to send their children to private or church-related schools at taxpayers' expense	22	29	22	27	*
The federal and state governments' efforts to raise achievement standards of public schools nationwide	20	36	28	16	*
Providing federal funds for education to the states in the form of "block grants"	19	26	27	27	1
The debate over what should be taught in U.S. history courses in the public schools	12	24	33	30	1
Charter schools, which would permit some public schools to operate independently, free from certain state restrictions	6	17	31	46	*
*Less than one-half of 1%.

Year: 1987
	Heard Or Read About %
Requiring sex education in the public schools	76
Permitting organized prayer in public schools	73
Requiring higher standards in the public schools	60
Recent efforts by the state government to improve public school education	59
Recent efforts by the federal government to improve public school education	53
Requiring higher achievement of public school students	52
Increasing the number of required courses in school and reducing the number of electives	40
Permitting parents more say about which local school their children attend	40
Teaching about the role played by religion in the history of this country and the world	38
Transferring the authority and responsibility for public education from the federal government to state governments	36
Establishing national awards for high-performing public schools and for high-achieving public school students	28
Proposals to provide school vouchers to public school parents that could be used for any public, private, or church-related school	27
Introducing required courses in character education to develop personal values and ethical behavior	19

Concern About Issues
Question 3: Which of these issues worry or concern you? (Asked in: 1987.)
[Code: 220-KnoCb-3]

Year: 1987
	Worried Or Concerned About %
Requiring sex education in the public schools	27
Permitting organized prayer in public schools	25
Requiring higher standards in the public schools	14
Recent efforts by the state government to improve public school education	15
Recent efforts by the federal government to improve public school education	14
Requiring higher achievement of public school students	14
Increasing the number of required courses in school and reducing the number of electives	14
Permitting parents more say about which local school their children attend	23
Teaching about the role played by religion in the history of this country and the world	17
Transferring the authority and responsibility for public education from the federal government to state governments	19
Establishing national awards for high-performing public schools and for high-achieving public school students	11
Proposals to provide school vouchers to public school parents that could be used for any public, private, or church-related school	24
Introducing required courses in character education to develop personal values and ethical behavior	17

Information About Education
Question 4: Have you read any book in the last year that deals with education? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 229-KnoIa-4]

	National Totals
Year	Yes %	No %
1969	16	84

Question 5: What is the name of the book(s)? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 233-KnoIb-5]

	National Totals
Year	1 Title Given %	2 Titles Given %	3 Titles Given %	4-6 Titles Given %	No Title Given %
1969	4	2	--	1	10

Local School Personnel: Principal (Elementary)
Question 6: Do you happen to know the name of the principal of the elementary school in your neighborhood? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 225-KnoLP-6]

	National Totals
Year	Yes %	No %
1969	47	53

Local School Personnel: Principal (High School)
Question 7: Do you know the name of the principal of the high school attended by children in your neighborhood? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 227-KnoLP-7]

	National Totals
Year	Yes %	No %
1969	40	60

	National Totals
Year	Yes %	No %	Don't Know %
1969	26	72	2

Local School Personnel: Superintendent
Question 9: Do you happen to know the name of the superintendent of schools? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 226-KnoLS-9]

	National Totals
Year	Yes %	No %
1969	56	44

Local Schools: Desire for More Information
Question 10: Would you like to know more about the public schools in this community? (Asked in: 1969, 1970.)
[Code: 222-KnoLD-10]

	National Totals
Year	Yes %	No %	Don't Know %
1970	54	44	2
1969	65	35	-

Local Schools: Extent of Interest
Question 11: How much interest do you have in what is going on in the local public schools? (Asked in: 1991.)
[Code: 236-KnoLE-11]

	National Totals
Year	Quite A Lot %	Some %	Very Little %	None At All %	Don't Know %
1991	38	38	17	7	*
*Less than one half of 1%.

Local Schools: Extent of Knowledge
Question 12: How much do you know about the local schools, quite a lot, some, or very little? (Asked in: 1969, 1983, 1991, 2007.)
[Code: 230-KnoLE-12]

	National Totals
Year	Quite A Lot %	Some %	Very Little %	None at All %	Don't Know %
2007	38	45	16	1	*
1991	22	47	30	--	1
1983	22	42	29	--	7
1969	18	40	42	*	*
*Less than one half of 1%.

	National Totals
Year	Well-informed %	Fairly Well-informed %	Not Well-informed %	Don't Know %
1987	14	36	44	6

Question 14: Would you say you were well informed, fairly well informed, or not well informed about the local public school situation? (Asked in: 1987, 1998, 2009.)
[Code: 240-KnoLE-14]

	National Totals
Year	Well-informed %	Fairly Well-informed %	Not Well-informed %	Don't Know %
2009	27	47	26	-
1998	31	42	26	1
1987	15	39	41	5

Local Schools: High School Dropouts
Question 15: Are there many high school dropouts in this community? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 224-KnoLH-15]

	National Totals
Year	Quite a Few %	Almost None %	Don't Know %	Commented, Average, Even One Is Too Many, etc. %
1969	26	41	30	3

Local Schools: Knowledge of Cost per Child
Question 16: What is your guess as to the cost per child per year in the public schools of your community? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 234-KnoLK-16]

	National Totals
Year	Gave a $ Figure %	Don't Know %
1969	43	57

	National Totals
Year	Well-informed %	Fairly Well-informed %	Not Well-informed %	Don't Know %
1987	15	36	43	6

Local Schools: Shortage of Space
Question 18: Do you think there is a shortage of classroom space in this community? (Asked in: 1969.)
[Code: 228-KnoLS-18]

	National Totals
Year	Yes %	No %	Don't Know/No Answer %
1969	56	29	15

	National Totals
Year	Yes, Give Fair and Accurate Picture %	No, Do Not %	Don't Know/No Answer %
2009	56	42	2
1977	42	36	22

Question 20: In your opinion, how could the media (newspapers, TV, and radio) improve their reporting of education in the local schools? (Asked in: 1977.)
[Code: 238-KnoMX-20]

Specific Suggestions Offered

Reporters should be sent into the school rooms to see what goes on there. They should put themselves in the teacher's place, and in the student's place.

It would be interesting to find out about all the different courses that are offered.

Reporters should be sent into the schoolrooms to see problems.

Why don't they [the media] tell us about the standing of the local schools -- how well they do in comparison with the private schools, and with other schools in nearby cities.

I should like to know more about the changes that are being introduced and why. There should be more background information about education and about new programs

Outstanding students should be written up and praised the way top athletes are.

An interesting series could be built around the idea of a typical day at school with a typical seventh-grader, ninth-grader, etc. I can remember what went on in my day. I wonder if it is the same now.

I hear a lot about the gadgets now used in the schools and in the classrooms to teach different subjects such as foreign languages and I would like to know more about them.

The media report on the school budget, but they never tell, in detail, just where the tax dollars are spent.

In the magazines, I read about 'open' classrooms, 'team teaching,' and such things, and I wonder if our local schools go in for these new ideas.

Question 21: Generally speaking, do you hear more good stories or bad stories about teachers in the news media? (Asked in: 2011.)
[Code: 910-KnoMX-21]

	National Totals
Year	Good stories %	Bad stories %	Don't know or refused %
2011	29	68	3

	National Totals
Year	Favor %	Oppose %	Don't know or refused %
2013	37	63	0
2011	51	48	1

Question 23:Should the performance reviews of the following professionals be released to the public? How about for doctors? Teachers? Business leaders? Police officers? (Asked in: 2013.)
[Code: 954-KnoX-23]

	National Totals
Year	Yes %	No %	Don't know /refused %
	Release performance reviews of doctors
2013	76	24	0
	Release performance reviews of teachers
2013	60	39	1
	Release performance reviews of business leaders
2013	59	40	1
	Release performance reviews of police officers
2013	70	30	0

Involvement in the Schools

Question 24: In the last 12 months, have you voted in an election that has affected your community's schools? (Asked in: 2012.)
[Code: 939-KnoIX-24]

	National Totals			Public School Parents
Year	Yes %	No %	Don't Know/Refused %	Yes %	No %	Don't Know/Refused %
2012	42	56	2	53	47	0

Question 25: In the last 12 months, have you visited any public school? (Asked in: 2012.)
[Code: 940-KnoIX-25]

	National Totals		Public School Parents
Year	Yes %	No %	Yes %	No %
2012	55	45	95	5

Question 26: In the last 12 months, have you volunteered at any public school? (Asked in: 2012.)
[Code: 941-KnoIX-26]

	National Totals		Public School Parents
Year	Yes %	No %	Yes %	No %
2012	27	73	58	42

Question 27: Do you know at least one public school teacher very well? (Asked in: 2012.)
[Code: 942-KnoIX-27]

	National Totals			Public School Parents
Year	Yes %	No %	Don't Know/Refused %	Yes %	No %	Don't Know/Refused %
2012	76	24	0	87	13	0

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Last modified August 21, 2013
k_q_knowledge_1.htm