Spreading the Good News
Kansas City Metro Schools are Performing Well...and Getting
Better!
Kansas City metro area schools are performing well
and getting better and that fact is largely ignored.
That's the results of an opinion poll just released
by Kansas NEA President Christy Levings and Missouri NEA President
Greg Jung. The release of the polling results also kicks off a media
campaign by the two states to promote the great things happening
in Kansas City metro schools. The campaign is funded by a grant
from the National Education Association.
Poll Findings
Good News Facts
Facts about Kansas and Missouri Public Schools
Background
See and hear the TV and radio spot
In the absence of continued support and greater resources for public
schools, improvements in metro area school performance may be threatened,
the state presidents said.
"For years the legislature has been playing games while the
need for school funding grew to nearly a billion dollars. As a result,
one of the best public school systems in the United States dangles
by a thread as programs and positions are cut," Levings said.
"By investing in our schools today, the legislature ensures
a healthy economic future for Kansas and Missouri. The vitality
and strength of our states are at risk if they fail to act. Our
legislators are accountable and they are shirking their responsibility.
Legislators are being short sighted in looking only to the next
election. This does not make good policy for the children of Kansas
or for the economic future of Kansas."
"Many elected officials talk about how hard these decisions
are, and how the time is not right. But the children who walked
through our school doors today have only one chance to get an education,
and we cannot afford to let that chance slip away," she added.
"The progress we're making in Kansas City metro area schools-and statewide
in Missouri-is at risk," Jung said. "As legislators downsize the state
budget, school districts suffer. Schools are forced to reduce the number of
teachers and other staff to address state funding reductions. The result is
that students find themselves in larger classes, and their teachers have less
time to provide the individual attention students need. This is the opposite
of what needs to happen and what we know works.
"Our public schools need continued support and resources if we want to
continue the progress we're making in student achievement."
Findings
- Good public schools are a top priority, and voters identify
more money as the most important first step.
- Metro area voters say that providing good schools for all students
is one of the most important issues facing their states. The only
issue that ranked higher is saving jobs and strengthening the
economy.
- The largest percentage of voters (42%) single out not enough
money as the most important problem facing metro area schools,
followed by 21% who choose parental involvement as the most important
problem.
- Voters in the Kansas City media market are more likely to approve
raising the sales tax, raising the income tax on higher-income
people, and closing corporate loopholes to provide greater funding
for public schools (39% approve vs. 27% oppose).
Voters have very favorable impressions of Kansas City Metro Public Schools.
- Kansas City metro area voters' impressions of their local public
schools are among the most positive (72% positive vs. 14% negative)
seen in polling voters in 14 other states and statewide in Missouri.
- Metro area voters' impressions of Kansas City metropolitan area
public school teachers are overwhelmingly positive (60%) rather
than negative (13%).
- Metro area voters are also very positive in their assessment
of how well metro area schools are doing at teaching the basics.
However, only one-fourth (25%) of voters reported seeing or hearing
mostly positive things about public schools in the previous month.
Objective information that Kansas City metro area schools are performing
well and getting better is largely ignored by the media and school critics.
- Metro area voters overwhelmingly reject explanations that blame teachers
or schools as the most important problems with metro area schools.
- Only 17% or fewer voters choose lack of discipline, too few good teachers,
or standards are not high enough as the central problem facing metro area
schools.
- After voters hear facts about Kansas City metro area schools, positive impressions
of metro area schools increase from 35% to 59%-a 25% increase in positive
impressions.
- Kansas City metro area voters' impressions of their local public schools
are among the most positive (72% positive vs. 14% negative) seen in polling
voters in 14 other states and statewide in Missouri.
- Metro area voters' impressions of Kansas City metropolitan area public school
teachers are overwhelmingly positive (60%) rather than negative (13%).
- Metro area public schools receive very high ratings for having the best
educated and trained teachers (48% excellent or very good vs. 14% not so good
or poor).
- Metro area voters are also very positive in their assessment of how well
metro area schools are doing at teaching the basics. Forty-five percent (45%)
of voters give metro area public schools an excellent or very good rating
for teaching the basics compared to 16% who give them a not-so-good or poor
rating.
Good News Facts:
- Listed in order from most to least impressive, as ranked by
Kansas City metro area voters.
- Kansas ranks 4th in the nation for having elementary students
with high math scores, and the math scores of Missouri's elementary
students have increased by over 50% in the past decade (Source:
2004 Math NAEP scores).
- Ninety-five percent of classes in public schools in Missouri
and Kansas are taught by teachers who are designated as 'highly
qualified' (Source: MO DESE and KS SDE website data, MO defines
a "highly qualified teacher" as one who has the appropriate
certification in her/his field).
- In Kansas and Missouri, the percentage of elementary school
students scoring at the highest levels in mathematics increased
by more than one-third in just the last three years (Source: 2004
Math NAEP scores).
- The number of Kansas and Missouri teachers honored with certification
from the prestigious National Board of Professional Teaching Standards
has more than tripled since 2000 (Source: National Board for Professional
Teaching Standards, State-by-State Listing).
- Over 93% of public schools in Kansas and Missouri have Internet
access (Source: Market Data Retrieval, Technology in Education
2001).
- The graduation rate for schools in Kansas City, Missouri and
Kansas City, Kansas is increasing 2 to 3 times faster than the
graduation rate for schools statewide (Source: MO DESE and KS
SDE website data).
- The percentage of students reading above grade level in Kansas
City, Missouri and Kansas City, Kansas is increasing at twice
the rate of schools statewide (Source: MO DESE and KS SDE website
data).
- Involving parents in their children's education is a top priority
for public school teachers in the Kansas City metro area.
- Middle school students in public schools in Kansas City, Missouri
and Kansas City, Kansas are improving their math scores at twice
the rate as students across their state (Source: MO DESE and KS
SDE website data).
Additional Good News Facts About:
Kansas Public
Schools
Missouri Public
Schools
Background
- KNEA and MNEA hired Abacus Associates to interview 400 Kansas
City metro area voters to explore their opinions about public
schools in the Kansas City metro area.
- Initial Finding: Kansas City metro area schools are performing
well and getting better and that fact is largely ignored.
- The survey took place between January 14 - 17, 2004.
- KNEA and MNEA are using this information to launch an information
campaign to let people know that Kansas City Metro schools are
performing well and getting better.
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