March 14, 2012 - New Yorkers Back Release Of Teacher Scores, Quinnipiac University Poll Finds; Voters Eating Up 6-1 Letter Grades For Restaurants Word format New York City voters approve 58 - 38 percent the release of public school teacher evaluations, with 59 - 36 percent approval among parents of public school students, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Support for releasing the teacher evaluations is 58 - 39 percent among black voters, 51 - 44 percent among white voters and 69 - 25 percent among Hispanic voters, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pe-ack) University poll finds. Voters in union households split 48 - 47 percent. Support ranges from 55 - 40 percent in Queens to 62 - 32 percent in The Bronx. The teacher evaluations are flawed, 46 percent of New York City voters say, while 20 percent trust the results, with 34 percent undecided. Parents of public school students say 52 - 21 percent that the evaluations are flawed. Teachers who score high on the evaluations should get higher pay, voters say 54 - 40 percent. But voters oppose 55 - 33 percent dismissing teachers who score low. There is no group in support of firing low-scoring teachers. Voters in union households split 46 - 48 percent on rewarding high-scoring teachers and oppose 57 - 28 percent firing low-scoring teachers. "Those teacher evaluation rankings are suspect, voters think. But, whatever their opinion of the validity of the numbers, voters would reward high scorers. Should low scorers be fired? Not so fast, New Yorkers say. A majority thinks releasing the evaluations was a good idea," said Maurice Carroll, director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. New York City voters approve 43 - 31 percent of the job Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott is doing, up from 34 - 37 percent February 8 and Walcott's highest score since his appointment. Parents of public school students approve of Walcott 54 - 37 percent. The chancellor's approval ranges from 35 - 29 percent on Staten Island to 55 - 26 percent in The Bronx. But voters disapprove 59 - 32 percent of the way Mayor Michael Bloomberg is handling public schools. By a 50 - 21 percent margin, New York City voters have a favorable opinion of public school teachers. Voters are divided 44 - 43 percent on whether the teachers' union plays a positive rather than negative role in improving public schools. And voters trust the teachers' union more than Mayor Bloomberg, 50 - 38 percent, to protect the interests of public school students. Parents of public school students trust the union more than Bloomberg 54 - 33 percent. Voters still support 84 - 10 percent a Bloomberg initiative to base any teacher layoffs on performance rather than seniority. Even voters in union households support performance-based layoffs 74 - 16 percent. Parents of public school students support it 90 - 5 percent. "Teachers score high; their union not so high. But New Yorkers would trust the union more than Mayor Michael Bloomberg to protect the interests of school kids," Carroll said. Restaurant Letter Grades By an overwhelming 82 - 14 percent, New York City voters support the use of letter grades to evaluate restaurants. Voters say 67 - 28 percent they consider these grades when they decide where to eat. "A lot of restaurant owners said those letter grades are unfair, but New Yorkers give the program an A," Carroll said. From March 6 - 11, Quinnipiac University surveyed 964 New York City voters with a margin of error of +/- 3.2 percentage points. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones. The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio, Virginia and the nation as a public service and for research. For more data or RSS feed- http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling.xml, call (203) 582-5201, or follow us on Twitter. 3. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Dennis Walcott is handling his job as New York City Schools Chancellor? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Approve 43% 33% 47% 43% 46% 40% 36% 49% 49% Disapprove 31 39 30 32 25 36 28 31 39 DK/NA 26 28 24 25 29 23 36 20 13 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Approve 55% 39% 45% 41% 35% 40% 50% 54% Disapprove 26 32 27 38 29 40 32 37 DK/NA 19 29 29 21 35 20 17 9 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Dennis Walcott is handling his job as New York City Schools Chancellor? Mar 14 Feb 08 Dec 14 Oct 19 Jul 27 May 11 2012 2012 2011 2011 2011 2011 Approve 43 34 33 39 37 31 Disapprove 31 37 34 33 24 21 DK/NA 26 29 33 28 39 48 16. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Michael Bloomberg is handling the public schools? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Approve 32% 44% 30% 33% 39% 27% 37% 24% 32% Disapprove 59 47 61 57 52 64 50 67 63 DK/NA 9 9 9 10 10 9 13 9 5 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Approve 30% 30% 41% 28% 32% 27% 37% 35% Disapprove 60 59 51 64 61 66 58 63 DK/NA 10 12 8 8 7 7 5 2 TREND: Do you approve or disapprove of the way Michael Bloomberg is handling the public schools? (*Low Approve also 25% Mar 2011) APPROVE....... High Low Mar 14 Feb 08 Jul 27 May 11 Mar 18 Jul 29 May 11 2012 2012 2011 2011 2011 2009 2011* Approve 32 26 32 25 25 57 25 Disapprove 59 61 58 64 64 30 64 DK/NA 9 13 10 11 11 13 11 17. Is your opinion of New York City's public school teachers favorable, unfavorable, or haven't you heard enough about them? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Favorable 50% 46% 55% 42% 50% 49% 55% 47% 42% Unfavorable 21 27 17 27 20 22 21 15 25 Hvn't hrd enough 24 24 23 23 24 24 19 33 24 REFUSED 5 2 4 7 6 4 4 5 8 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Favorable 42% 55% 48% 47% 60% 64% 50% 57% Unfavorable 22 18 21 23 24 14 23 21 Hvn't hrd enough 29 20 28 26 11 17 24 18 REFUSED 6 7 3 4 5 5 3 4 TREND: Is your opinion of New York City's public school teachers favorable, unfavorable, or haven't you heard enough about them? Mar 14 Feb 08 May 11 Mar 18 2012 2012 2011 2011 Favorable 50 47 53 54 Unfavorable 21 22 18 17 Hvn't hrd enough 24 26 26 25 REFUSED 5 5 3 4 18. Generally speaking, do you believe the teachers' union is playing a positive or a negative role in improving New York City's educational system? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Positive 44% 30% 51% 38% 43% 44% 40% 47% 47% Negative 43 57 37 51 46 41 48 38 38 DK/NA 13 12 12 11 11 15 12 15 14 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Positive 44% 47% 42% 42% 36% 54% 39% 41% Negative 43 39 45 43 58 33 50 48 DK/NA 13 14 13 15 6 13 11 11 TREND: Generally speaking, do you believe the teachers' union is playing a positive or a negative role in improving New York City's educational system? Mar 14 Feb 08 May 11 Mar 18 Sep 22 Feb 12 2012 2012 2011 2011 2005 1998 Positive 44 47 43 46 48 45 Negative 43 39 44 41 29 32 DK/NA 13 14 13 13 22 23 19. Who do you trust more to protect the interests of New York City public school teachers, Mayor Bloomberg or the teachers' union? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Mayor Bloomberg 23% 36% 17% 32% 28% 19% 23% 14% 31% Teachers' union 68 52 78 57 62 74 66 80 63 DK/NA 8 12 5 12 10 7 10 6 6 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Mayor Bloomberg 26% 18% 27% 23% 30% 17% 26% 17% Teachers' union 69 72 65 71 57 74 64 74 DK/NA 6 11 8 6 13 10 9 9 TREND: Who do you trust more to protect the interests of New York City public school teachers, Mayor Bloomberg or the teacher's union? Mar 14 Feb 08 2012 2012 Mayor Bloomberg 23 18 Teachers' union 68 73 DK/NA 8 10 20. Who do you trust more to protect the interests of New York City public school students, Mayor Bloomberg or the teachers' union? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Mayor Bloomberg 38% 51% 32% 44% 47% 30% 47% 28% 34% Teachers' union 50 33 58 43 42 57 40 65 55 DK/NA 12 16 10 13 11 13 13 8 11 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Mayor Bloomberg 36% 31% 45% 38% 42% 26% 42% 33% Teachers' union 58 52 44 51 44 61 47 54 DK/NA 6 17 11 11 14 13 11 13 TREND: Who do you trust more to protect the interests of New York City public school students, Mayor Bloomberg or the teacher's union? Mar 14 Feb 08 2012 2012 Mayor Bloomberg 38 31 Teachers' union 50 56 DK/NA 12 13 21. Some people say that public school teachers who do an outstanding job should be rewarded with additional pay, so-called merit pay. Do you think this is a good idea or a bad idea? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Good idea 69% 69% 71% 68% 72% 67% 66% 74% 72% Bad idea 26 27 25 25 24 27 30 20 22 DK/NA 5 4 4 7 4 6 4 6 6 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Good idea 66% 72% 73% 69% 50% 57% 77% 77% Bad idea 27 25 21 27 37 35 20 19 DK/NA 7 2 6 4 13 7 3 4 TREND: Some people say that public school teachers who do an outstanding job should be rewarded with additional pay, so-called merit pay. Do you think this is a good idea or a bad idea? Mar 14 Feb 08 May 11 Mar 18 2012 2012 2011 2011 Good idea 69 71 66 63 Bad idea 26 24 31 33 DK/NA 5 5 3 4 22. Some people have suggested that firing public school teachers should be made easier. Do you think this is a good idea or a bad idea? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Good idea 59% 68% 56% 62% 61% 57% 69% 45% 54% Bad idea 34 26 36 30 31 35 24 46 38 DK/NA 8 6 8 8 7 8 7 9 8 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Good idea 53% 56% 65% 57% 66% 59% 56% 48% Bad idea 38 34 26 39 29 35 40 46 DK/NA 8 11 9 4 5 6 5 6 TREND: Some people have suggested that firing public school teachers should be made easier. Do you think this is a good idea or a bad idea? Mar 14 Feb 08 May 11 Mar 18 2012 2012 2011 2011 Good idea 59 54 59 54 Bad idea 34 38 34 40 DK/NA 8 8 7 6 23. If public school administrators need to lay off teachers, do you think they should lay off teachers based on seniority or based on their performance? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Seniority 10% 10% 10% 11% 11% 9% 12% 8% 10% Performance 84 78 85 83 83 85 83 88 85 DK/NA 6 12 5 6 7 6 5 4 6 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Seniority 14% 9% 8% 8% 19% 16% 7% 5% Performance 82 85 84 86 76 74 89 90 DK/NA 4 6 8 6 5 10 4 5 TREND: If public school administrators need to lay off teachers, do you think they should lay off teachers based on seniority or based on their performance? Mar 14 Feb 08 May 11 Mar 18 2012 2012 2011 2011 Seniority 10 11 13 16 Performance 84 81 82 78 DK/NA 6 7 5 5 24. As you may know, charter schools are operated by private or non-profit organizations. The schools are paid for with public funds. Do you think there should be an expansion of charter schools in New York City or not? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Yes 53% 60% 49% 57% 56% 50% 44% 56% 57% No 38 34 40 35 37 38 47 36 26 DK/NA 10 7 11 7 6 12 9 8 16 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Yes 62% 50% 51% 51% 55% 44% 61% 61% No 29 37 36 45 40 47 33 34 DK/NA 9 13 12 4 4 9 6 4 TREND: As you may know, charter schools are operated by private or non-profit organizations. The schools are paid for with public funds. Do you think there should be an expansion of charter schools in New York City or not? Mar 14 Feb 08 Nov 23 Mar 24 Feb 25 2012 2012 2010 2009 2009 Yes 53 52 59 62 67 No 38 38 32 29 26 DK/NA 10 11 10 9 8 25. Do you approve or disapprove of releasing to the public the results of evaluations of public school teachers? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Approve 58% 73% 52% 62% 64% 53% 51% 58% 69% Disapprove 38 27 43 32 32 42 44 39 25 DK/NA 5 - 5 5 5 5 5 4 6 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Approve 62% 56% 58% 55% 58% 48% 60% 59% Disapprove 32 39 37 40 35 47 36 36 DK/NA 6 4 4 5 7 5 4 6 26. If a candidate for mayor opposes releasing teacher evaluations to the public are you more likely to vote for that candidate, less likely to vote for that candidate, or doesn't it make a difference? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp More likely 13% 5% 16% 11% 12% 14% 15% 13% 10% Less likely 25 32 20 32 26 24 25 21 28 No difference 59 59 61 54 58 59 57 63 55 DK/NA 4 3 4 3 3 4 2 3 7 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch More likely 16% 14% 12% 13% 6% 20% 14% 20% Less likely 20 25 26 24 30 23 26 21 No difference 60 57 60 59 58 53 56 54 DK/NA 5 4 2 4 6 4 4 5 27. Do you think teachers who score low on evaluations should be dismissed or don't you think so? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Yes 33% 41% 29% 37% 37% 30% 37% 25% 34% No 55 50 60 47 50 58 48 64 55 DK/NA 12 8 11 16 14 12 14 11 11 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Yes 38% 27% 34% 34% 40% 28% 34% 30% No 53 59 53 54 50 57 59 61 DK/NA 9 14 13 12 11 15 7 8 28. Do you think teachers who score high on evaluations should be rewarded with additional pay or don't you think so? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Yes 54% 55% 55% 54% 60% 49% 52% 55% 56% No 40 41 39 40 35 44 41 38 40 DK/NA 6 3 6 7 5 7 7 6 4 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Yes 54% 52% 58% 54% 47% 46% 58% 54% No 40 41 35 42 46 48 38 41 DK/NA 7 7 7 4 7 6 4 5 29. Do you trust the results of the recently released teacher evaluations or do you think the teacher evaluations were flawed? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Wht Blk Hsp Trust results 20% 28% 19% 18% 24% 17% 19% 17% 26% Results flawed 46 45 47 45 44 47 47 43 47 DK/NA 34 27 34 36 32 36 34 40 27 Union HAVE KIDS.... Brnx Kngs Man Qns StIsl HsHlds <18 InPubSch Trust results 21% 18% 20% 23% 17% 17% 24% 21% Results flawed 42 42 46 50 55 54 46 52 DK/NA 37 40 34 27 28 29 30 26 35. Do you approve or disapprove of New York City's system of using letter grades to measure cleanliness in restaurants? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Approve 82% 79% 82% 84% 85% 79% Disapprove 14 18 14 14 13 16 DK/NA 4 3 4 3 3 5 36. Do you consider these letter grades when you decide where to eat or not? Tot Rep Dem Ind Men Wom Yes 67% 59% 65% 75% 66% 69% No 28 36 29 23 30 25 DK/NA 5 4 6 2 4 6 Demographic Summary
