The Independent Parent Survey:
Views of NYC public school parents and and parent leaders
on class size, testing, and Mayoral control
a report from Class Size Matters
February 13, 2008
A report released today by Class Size Matters and posted at www.classsizematters.org explores how New York City public school parents view conditions in their children’s schools and the system as a whole.
The official parent survey developed by the Department of Education had some glaring deficiencies. It omitted any questions involving the overall direction of our public schools and the key policies put in place by this administration, and relegated critical concerns of parents about class size, testing, and other issues into a catch-all question towards the end of the survey – in an apparent attempt to minimize their importance.
Class Size Matters decided to develop an independent, parent-driven survey with questions covering some of the key areas left out of the official DOE survey. Hart Associates used this survey to poll a representative cross section of 604 parents by telephone. More than 1,000 parents responded to the survey online. The latter group was unusually active, involved, and informed about conditions at their schools and system-wide, with half of them either active members or officers of PTA, School Leadership Teams or Community Education Councils.
Over 80% of both groups of parents said that overcrowding and class size had stayed the same or worsened over the last few years, and over 70% believed that class size reduction was the most important reform that should be taken to improve the public schools. On testing, over half opposed the DOE policy of holding back students primarily based on standardized exams, and felt that the emphasis on the results of such exams caused too much stress for their children. In the online survey, when asked about the new initiative that will pay students for high test scores, parents overwhelming opposed it.
A substantial majority of respondents believed that Mayoral control should be ended or amended by the State Legislature. Nearly 800 parents provided detailed comments on this issue, which clustered around several main themes: In the current system of governance, there was a lack of checks and balances, leading to almost dictatorial powers being exercised by the Mayor and Chancellor. The views of important stakeholders such as parents had been routinely ignored, and the school system had been run more like a business than an educational enterprise.
Other common criticisms revolved around what parents saw as the results of this unchecked, unaccountable power. The DOE had mismanaged finances and spent too much money on consultants and contractors, had embarked on too many confusing reorganizations, and had put in place the wrong educational policies. Finally, many parents expressed the view that schools and the educational system as a whole needed more separation from the political sphere and greater continuity than politics
could provide.
When asked about the positive and negative aspects of their child’s school, more than one thousand parents responded in detail. Their comments on this question, as well as on Mayoral control, are a rich source of information about the views of New York public school parents, as well as some of our most engaged and active parent leaders.
Comments from civic and parent leaders about the Class Size Matters report,
The Independent Parent Survey
Council Member Robert Jackson, chair of NYC Council Education committee:
"Parents are the most important voice in the education "chorus" because they vocalize for their children. This results of this survey show that parents are right on track in prioritizing what will most help their own children learn. The one question the survey did not answer was why the Department of Education had to resort to manipulating statistics and compounding answers to avoid the conclusion parents put forthrightly – that class size clearly matters."
Randi Weingarten, President of the United Federation of Teachers:
“This survey confirms what educators in schools have heard from parents – that parents understand smaller class size is an important tool in helping children succeed and must be a priority. Parents, like teachers, are also concerned with the imbalance between testing and teaching and want to take real steps not to eliminate testing, but to ensure we actually educate the whole child.”
Bijou Clinger-Miller, parent and member of Presidents Council, District 3 in Manhattan:
“This report is detailed, easy to understand and looks at the data in all different and important ways. Unlike the DOE parent survey, it does not sweep major parental concerns under the rug. Though the DOE survey forced parents to choose only one priority for their children’s schools, this survey provided us with a real forum to give our opinions on class size, standardized testing, Mayoral control and more. Bravo!”
Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum:
"I congratulate Leonie Haimson and Class Size Matters for their balanced survey, and for their commitment to listening to parents' views when the Department of Education would not. The DOE has completely ignored parents’ unhappiness with overcrowded classes and the hyper-emphasis on testing. Hopefully, this survey will help get the message across."
Sandra Trujillo, Senior Special Adviser to the Children's Defense Fund- New York :
“The Children’s Defense Fund believes that the parent's true voice must be heard. In particular, the results of this survey confirm the fact that smaller class size is a no-brainer for any parent with a child in the NYC public schools. Smaller classes are especially important for Black and Latino students who are disproportionately at risk of failing and dropping out. Low-income students who were in smaller classes for four years more than double their odds of graduating on time, and are less likely to be arrested and drawn into the "Cradle to Prison Pipeline". It's unfortunate that DOE has not made class size reduction a priority. They should heed this report.”
Diane Ravitch, Research Professor of Education at New York University:
“This important and thoroughly professional survey expresses the views of parents of the city's public school children. Of all the participants in education debates, they have the most at stake: their children and their children's future. They deserve to be heard."
Maria Dapontes-Dougherty, President of Presidents' Council District 30, Queens:
“It is such a breath of fresh air to read a survey that actually measures the major concerns of NYC public school parents. When we participated in the hearings for Mayoral control, we emphasized accountability and parental input. Here we are, after numerous reorganizations, in overcrowded buildings run by non-responsive, non-educators that follow the business model for education and follow the mantra of teaching to the test. Thank you for representing what the priorities of NYC public school parents really are.”
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For the full report (in pdf) click here:
Here is a power-point summarizing the results:
