More than half of teachers say their local school district is headed in the right direction, according to a recent survey of teachers by the school-choice advocacy organization EdChoice. That optimism level is up 12 points from last spring.
The survey also shows that at least half of teachers support a range of school-choice options: 74% for education savings accounts, 66% for open enrollment, 60% for charter schools, and 54% for school vouchers. Two-thirds of teachers also support refundable tax credits for educational purposes.
Support for school-choice programs was higher among private-school teachers, but even a majority of traditional public-school teachers expressed a strong level of support, according to the poll. For example, 81% of teachers from private schools backed ESAs, while 74% of district school teachers did as well. For vouchers, support stood at 67% among private-school teachers and 51% among district-school teachers.
These national results are in line with general public support for school choice in North Carolina. A Carolina Journal poll from January 2024 found that two-thirds of likely NC voters support the Opportunity Scholarship Program, the state’s voucher.
Overall, the EdChoice survey found that roughly two-thirds of teachers feel “a sense of purpose” and “hopeful” about the future, while one-third report feeling “overwhelmed” in their jobs. Private school teachers are more optimistic about the future than their public school counterparts.
On other issues, teachers are generally not supportive of closing the US Department of Education, with differences splitting along party lines and Republicans being more in favor. Moreover, over half of teachers believe that laws passed to limit the teaching of divisive topics are either bad or unnecessary.
Teachers underestimate the true cost of per-pupil spending in public schools. District school teachers are more likely than private school teachers to say spending is too low. Teachers also believe that school districts should have more influence regarding K-12 education than state or federal government.
The poll was conducted March 21-27 with a sample of 1,032 teachers and a margin of error of plus or minus 3.72%.