1. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 1 Partnership For Learning Statewide Voter Survey February 2007 Presented by Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. www.dhmresearch.com

2. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 2  Telephone survey of 500 voters in WA state  Voted in at least one of the last four primary and general elections  Margin of error plus or minus 4.4%  Conducted January 24-27, 2007  Averaged 15 minutes in length  Survey objectives  Assess voter perceptions of education priorities  Test support level for increasing math graduation requirement INTRODUCTION & METHODOLOGY

3. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 3 General Attitudes About K–12 Education

4. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 4 Voters are split on whether or not K–12 education in Washington is headed in the right direction. Almost a quarter don’t know. In general, would you say that Washington’s K–12 public education system is headed in the right direction, or are things off on the wrong track?

5. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 5 The greatest concerns voters have about public schools are: preparation for college and the workforce, and meeting academic standards Most or second-most important concern facing public schools in Washington:

6. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 6 Voters continue to believe that public school expectations for student learning are too low Do public schools expect students to learn too much, too little, or [are expectations] about right? 2007 Results 2004 Results

7. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 7 General Attitudes About Early Learning

8. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 8 Which Skills are the Most Important to Develop Early in Life? Which of these aspects of a young child’s development do you feel is the most important?

9. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 9 Voters’ Priorities for Early Childhood Education Which statement best describes your opinion of learning opportunities from birth to five years old? (First or second choice)

10. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 10 Voters Narrowly Favor Full-Day Kindergarten Remaining Optional Currently, not all students in Washington attend full-day kindergarten. Which of the following statements best describes your position on full-day kindergarten?

11. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 11 State Graduation Requirements

12. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 12 A majority of voters support requiring students to pass the 10 th grade WASL Starting with the class of 2008, students will be required to demonstrate that they have met the reading, writing, and math standards by passing the 10 th grade WASL in those subjects. Do you support or oppose the requirements?

13. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 13 Support has remained steady since 2002 2002 Results 2007 Results 2005 Results

14. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 14 Support climbs (as high as 86%) when we provide information about alternatives to the test Would you be more supportive if you knew students were given 4 opportunities to retake the test, as well as alternative means for demonstrating their skills after retaking it? Would you be more supportive if you knew that students with significant disabilities could be exempted from the requirement?

15. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 15 Washington voters do not support a delay in the reading/writing WASL graduation requirement Starting in 2008, students will be required to demonstrate proficiency in reading and writing, as measured by the 10 th grade WASL Test, in order to earn a diploma. Do you support or oppose maintaining the requirement for 2008, even if it means some students won’t graduate on time? Total Support 61% Total Oppose 33%

16. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 16 Math Graduation Requirements

17. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 17 A majority of voters agree that the graduation requirement of two years of un- specified math should be raised to three or four years Currently, Washington state requires two years of unspecified math to earn a high school diploma. Unspecified math means that there is no required content for earning those two credits. Which statement best describes your feelings about the state’s current math requirement?

18. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 18 Support for increasing math requirement increases after learning about university entrance requirements and the high rates of students that have to take “remedial” math classes at the community college level Support for increasing math requirement to three or four years.

19. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 19 Nearly 3 in 5 voters support limiting 40–50 math curricula to 3–5 research- based curricula Currently, there are about 40-50 math curriculums being used in Washington state. A proposal from the State Board of Education would limit the options to 3-5 research-based math curriculums from which local districts could choose. Would you support this move?

20. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 20 Preparation for Life After High School

21. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 21 Most voters say that the skills needed to succeed at college are the same skills needed to succeed at work In the 21st century, [are] the skills and knowledge necessary for success at work after high school essentially the same as those needed for success in college?

22. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 22 Voters support investments in increasing bachelor’s degree production in high demand fields by a large margin. [After being told about the shortfall in college degrees:] Would you support or oppose a $90 million proposal being considered by the legislature to expand capacity at our public universities to produce 8,000 additional degrees in high-demand fields by 2010 and 2,000 more new degrees by 2020?

23. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 23 Teachers and Teaching

24. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 24 Voters support paying teachers on a basis other than seniority Reactions to the following statements:

25. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 25 Voters want high job performance from teachers Reactions to the following statements:

26. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 26 Other voter reactions Reactions to the following statements:

27. Davis, Hibbitts & Midghall, Inc. │ PFL 2007 Voter Survey 27 Key findings about Washington voters:  Split on the direction K-12 education is taking in the state  Concerned about preparing students for college and the workforce and making sure students meet academic standards  Support the current WASL graduation requirement  Support increasing math requirement from 2 years to 3 or 4 years OBSERVATIONS