Field Research Corporation San Francisco, CA 94108 2015-003 101215 September 2015 Field Poll – Teacher Shortage Topline Findings – (n = 1,002 registered voters) The next few questions are about the k-12 schools, and specifically about the declining number of qualified new teachers who are available to teach in the state’s public schools. According to recent estimates, enrollment in teacher preparation programs has declined by more than half over the past decade, and many of the state’s public schools are now facing teacher shortages, especially in fields like math, science, special education and bilingual education. 1. How serious of a problem do you think the shortage of public school teachers is in California – very serious, somewhat serious, not too serious or not at all serious? VERY SERIOUS ................................... 64% SOMEWHAT SERIOUS .......................... 22 NOT TOO SERIOUS ................................ 7 NOT AT ALL SERIOUS ............................ 4 NO OPINION .......................................... 3 2. How important do you think it is for the state to do more to encourage young people and others to enroll in teacher preparation programs to become teachers in the state’s k12 public schools -- extremely important, somewhat important, not too important or not at all important? EXTREMELY IMPORTANT ..................... 65% SOMEWHAT IMPORTANT...................... 26 NOT TOO IMPORTANT............................ 4 NOT AT ALL IMPORTANT ........................ 3 NO OPINION .......................................... 2 3. To deal with its shortage of teachers, one approach is to allow schools to hire individual who have not yet completed their training or earned a teaching credential. Do you favor this approach strongly, favor it somewhat, oppose it somewhat, or oppose it strongly? FAVOR STRONGLY .............................. 14% FAVOR SOMEWHAT ............................. 30 OPPOSE SOMEWHAT .......................... 26 OPPOSE STRONGLY ............................ 26 NO OPINION .......................................... 4 4. There is a proposal in the legislature to try to increase the number of prospective teachers in the state by forgiving a portion of their college loans or offering them scholarships if they agree to teach for at least 4 years in low-income communities or in subjects where there is a shortage. Do you favor this proposal strongly, favor it somewhat, oppose it somewhat, or oppose it strongly? FAVOR STRONGLY .............................. 58% FAVOR SOMEWHAT ............................. 27 OPPOSE SOMEWHAT ............................ 5 OPPOSE STRONGLY .............................. 8 NO OPINION .......................................... 2 5. How serious of a problem do you think it is that public schools in low-income communities have fewer fully qualified teachers than do public schools in wealthier areas – very serious, somewhat serious, not too serious or not at all serious? VERY SERIOUS ................................... 66% SOMEWHAT SERIOUS .......................... 23 NOT TOO SERIOUS ................................ 4 NOT AT ALL SERIOUS ............................ 4 NO OPINION .......................................... 3 6. How important do you feel it is for the state’s teaching force to be racially, ethnically and linguistically diverse – extremely important, somewhat important, not too important or not at all important? EXTREMELY IMPORTANT ..................... 46% SOMEWHAT IMPORTANT...................... 31 NOT TOO IMPORTANT............................ 9 NOT AT ALL IMPORTANT ...................... 12 NO OPINION .......................................... 2 7. In your opinion, do you think that the starting salary for qualified k-12 teachers in your local community is too low, about right or too high? TOO LOW ........................................... 58% ABOUT RIGHT ..................................... 18 TOO HIGH ............................................. 3 DON’T KNOW/NO OPINION ................... 21 Macintosh HD2:Users:markd:Desktop:Teacher Shortage Topline.docx 1 8. How important is it that school districts offer starting salaries to entry-level teachers that are comparable to the salaries being offered to other new college graduates – extremely important, somewhat important, not too important or not at all important? EXTREMELY IMPORTANT ..................... 51% SOMEWHAT IMPORTANT...................... 37 NOT TOO IMPORTANT............................ 5 NOT AT ALL IMPORTANT ........................ 3 NO OPINION .......................................... 4 9. There are a number of things that state government could do to ensure that there are more high-quality teachers in the k-12 schools. I am going to read some proposals that have been made and for each please tell me how important you feel it is for the state to do this. (READ ITEMS IN RANDOM ORDER, ASKING:) How important is it for the state to do this – extremely important, somewhat important, not too important or not at all important? EXTREMELY SOMEWHAT NOT TOO NOT AT ALL DK/ IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT REF ( ) a. ( ) b. ( ) c. ( ) d. Ensure that all teachers receive rigorous training and preparation before they begin teaching ............... 65% ........ 29 ............. 3 .............. 2..........1 Provide opportunities for prospective teachers to receive a full year of practice teaching under the guidance of an expert teacher ..................................... 51% ........ 37 ............. 7 .............. 4..........1 Require that all teachers receive ongoing professional development and training after they receive their teaching credentials ................................ 62% ........ 30 ............. 4 .............. 2..........2 Ensure mentoring and support for recently hired teachers so they don’t leave teaching within a few years ............................................................................. 59% ........ 31 ............. 4 .............. 4..........2 10. How likely would you be to encourage a friend or family member to become a k-12 teacher in California today – very likely, somewhat likely, not too likely or not at all likely? VERY LIKELY....................................... 34% SOMEWHAT LIKELY ............................. 36 NOT TOO LIKELY ................................. 17 NOT AT ALL LIKELY .............................. 11 NO OPINION .......................................... 2 11. A proposition that will appear in the November 2016 statewide election ballot would require public schools to offer students who are not proficient in English academic instruction in both English and the student’s native language. It would also require the schools to offer Englishspeaking students more opportunities to master other nonEnglish languages. If the election were being held today, would you be inclined to vote YES or NO on this statewide ballot proposition? YES.................................................... 61% NO ..................................................... 32 NO OPINION .......................................... 7 12. Are you the parent or legal guardian of any children age 18 or under? YES.................................................... 30% NO ..................................................... 69 REFUSED ............................................. 1 Macintosh HD2:Users:markd:Desktop:Teacher Shortage Topline.docx 2