California Listening

By Harvey Hunt

In California, as in other places, there is a pervasive perception that the public is neither supportive of the public schools nor particularly interested in providing all children with a high-quality education.

This perception is also flat-out wrong. Contrary to conventional wisdom, California's public does care. It is fairly positive about the schools it knows best, it wants to invest more in the schools, and it believes that improving schools is the top priority, even when compared with fighting crime or cutting taxes.

We have just completed what we believe is the most extensive public opinion research project ever done at a state level on the issue of education. What we found was enlightening, and so was the process of engaging in this "listening"...