Most Milwaukee residents rate their public schools as average to failing, but the majority blame parents or the students for poor academic performance – not teachers or schools, according to a new study that reveals conflicting public attitudes about how to improve K-12 education in Milwaukee.
The results of the study released Sunday by the nonprofit Wisconsin Policy Research Institute indicate most Milwaukee residents want sweeping improvements in their schools but are far less supportive of the specific options proposed for getting there.
“We’re trying to get a sense of the public’s attention and knowledge of what’s going on in local schools and what their appetite is for change,” said George Lightbourn, president of WPRI, a think tank generally associated with conservative viewpoints.
Respondents’ answers send mixed messages to policy-makers.
Most residents surveyed believed Milwaukee’s public schools should be overhauled and not just tweaked, but they offered tepid support for reforms targeted most directly at reshaping school or teacher operations, such as adopting a longer school day or year or firing teachers – even those with records of low performance.
Some of those changes have become the hallmarks of urban schools showing strong results with mostly poor or minority students.