A $1 million survey of Newark, N.J., residents about their public schools—the first phase of a proposed city schools makeover fueled by a $100 million grant from Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg—found overwhelming agreement that the schools desperately need improvement. How to accomplish that, and who needs the most help, was another matter.
More than 80 percent of the approximately 17,000 city residents surveyed advocated giving principals more control over their schools and getting rid of principals in low-performing schools.
Nearly seven in 10 were in favor of giving extra pay to good teachers. Residents were split on whether low-performing schools should be closed and replaced with public charter schools, with 65 percent saying they knew little or nothing about charters.
