Nearly three out of four voters in Rhode Island (72%)

say they pay attention to issues in K-12 education.

Rhode Islanders are much more likely to say K-12

education has gotten off on the “wrong track”

(52%), compared to the one-third of voters (32%)

who say it is heading in the “right direction.”

Six out of ten respondents gave negative ratings to

the state’s public school system. (35% said “good”

or “excellent”; 60% said “fair” or “poor”)

Eighty percent of Rhode Islanders either

underestimate educational spending per student, or

they could not guess. When given the latest per-

student spending information, voters are less likely to

say funding is at a level that is “too low,” compared to

answering without having such information.

Of those respondents giving a grade, Rhode Islanders

are much more likely to give grades A or B to private

schools in their local areas, compared to nearby

district schools and public charter schools.

Rhode Island voters have a wide range of

schooling preferences: 54% prefer private school;

29% would select public school; 10% say public

charter school; 4% would like to homeschool.

56% of voters support school vouchers, which

is significantly greater than the proportion

opposed (33%). Even without a definition of

any kind, support for vouchers is greater than

opposition by a nearly two-to-one margin.

(40% favor vs. 23% oppose)

The demographics most likely to favor vouchers

are school parents (62%), urbanites (63%),

Republicans (65%), conservatives (67%), young

voters (62%), and low-income earners (63%).

Liberals are the least likely to support (49%).

There is much higher support for vouchers with

universal eligibility (62%), compared to the

proportion who supports means-testing (32%).

By a two-to-one margin, voters support the

school choice policy financing tax-credit

scholarships. (57% favor vs. 28% oppose)

A plurality of Rhode Islanders (46%) favor

education savings accounts (ESAs).

Voters are twice almost three times as likely

to support public charter schools. (62% favor

vs. 22% oppose)

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE RHODE ISLAND K-12 & SCHOOL CHOICE SURVEY

DIRECTION OF K-12 EDUCATION

RATING THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS SYSTEM

SPENDING ON K-12 EDUCATION

PAYING ATTENTION TO K-12 EDUCATION

GRADING AREA SCHOOLS

SELECTING A SCHOOL

SCHOOL VOUCHERS

OTHER K-12 EDUCATION REFORMS

Title: Rhode Island K-12 & School Choice Survey

Survey Organization: Braun Research, Inc. (BRI)

Survey Sponsor: The Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice

Release Partner(s): Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity

Interview Dates: June 24 to July 8, 2013

Interview Method: Live Telephone | 70% landline and 30% cell phone

Interview Length: 12 minutes (average)

Language(s): English

Sample Frame: Registered Voters

Sampling Method: Dual Frame; Probability Sampling; Random Digit Dial (RDD)

Population Samples: RHODE ISLAND = 602

Providence = 359

South/East = 243

Margins of Error: RHODE ISLAND = ± 4.0 percentage points

Providence = ± 5.2 percentage points

South/East = ± 6.3 percentage points

Response Rates: Landline (LL) = 14.6%

Cell Phone = 11.0%

Weighting? Yes (Landline/Cell , Age, Race/Ethnicity, Gender, and Region)

Oversampling? No

Project Contact:

Paul DiPerna | Research Director |paul@edchoice.org

SURVEY PROFILE