The EdChoice 2024 Schooling in America Report shows that parents want more educational options—options that are more readily available than they realize.
Last month, education-focused 501(c)(3) EdChoice released its 2024 Schooling in America survey results. The findings, though not necessarily unexpected for those interested in the state of modern education, reveal quite a bit about the education system in America, the educational priorities of the average American family, and the likely future of charter and religious private schools in our country.
EdChoice’s mission is to advance educational freedom and choice for all as a pathway to successful lives and a stronger society. It is committed to understanding and pursuing a K–12 education ecosystem that empowers every family to choose the learning environment that fits their children’s needs best. One way the organization fulfills its noble mission is by performing and releasing an annual survey, aimed at better understanding the educational landscape in America and using those findings to inform its work.
From April 9 to April 30, 2024, EdChoice, along with partner Braun Research, surveyed 2,319 parents who currently have children in elementary or secondary schools, as well as 1,502 members of the general population. This year, they asked two types of questions: “legacy” questions (questions asked every year to determine trends over time) and more timely questions related to recent issues in education. Between these two sets of questions, Americans had the chance to give their opinions on issues including school choice, accountability, technology, school safety, and artificial intelligence.
The findings of the survey can be broken down into five categories: accountability and transparency, technology, parents and choice, direction of K-12 education, and educational choice. The results of all five categories remind us that education looks very different today than it did 50 years ago, 10 years ago, and even 5 years ago, especially regarding technology usage, parent priorities, and schooling preferences.
When asked which issues were most important for schools to speak about with “accountability and transparency,” parents overwhelmingly chose school safety (76%). Curriculum was a distant second, followed closely by student performance. About 60% of parents said their child’s school is very transparent or better about school safety, with 62% saying the same about student academic performance. Less than half (47%) said their school is very transparent about curriculum, revealing an imbalance between how much parents care about curriculum transparency and how much information they receive.
Perhaps surprising to some of our readers, the results in “technology” were all quite positive, even regarding the use of AI in classrooms. Most school parents expressed a desire for virtual options in their child’s schooling (58% would like schooling to be virtual part-time and 53% favored a full-time virtual school option. Two-thirds of parents said that schools should teach students how to use artificial intelligence (AI). In fact, a strong majority of private school parents liked the idea of educational AI instruction, with 79% agreeing that it should be taught and 44% agreeing strongly.
These are interesting statistics that indicate some transformative possibilities for the future of education in America, but what’s really fascinating is the extreme shift overall in Americans’ view of education.
The “parents and choice” results revealed an overall preference for private and charter schooling over public schooling, even amongst those currently sending their children to public school. Current enrollment data shows that 80% of school parents have kids enrolled in public school. If given the option to choose any type of school, only 40% of school parents would select a public school; 60% would choose a private, charter, or homeschool option.
In fact, the “direction” section of K-12 Education dives deeper into this reality, indicating that less than half (46%) of public-school parents give the public schools in their area a grade of “A” or “B” for school quality. This score dropped seven percentage points from last year’s results. Furthermore, most Americans (70%) say education is on the wrong track—the same share as in 2023. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of parents say K–12 education is headed in the wrong direction—an all-time high level of pessimism in this annual poll.
It logically follows that when asked about “educational choice,” an overwhelming majority of parents once again expressed strong interest in school choice options. Over two-thirds (67%) of Americans and 78% of school parents support school vouchers, which have been popular since 2020. Similarly, over two-thirds (69%) of Americans and 79% of school parents support tax-credit scholarships, continuing the trend of high support from the last five years. While charter schools are the least popular school choice policy, 63% of Americans and 72% of school parents support them. Support has dipped slightly this year, though it remains high overall.
So, what do these survey results tell us about the present state of American education? And, more importantly, what do these results mean for the future of education in our country?
The biggest takeaway from the survey is the substantial disconnect between where parents would prefer to send their children to school and where they actually send them. Given that, why are parents continuing to send their children to public schools, despite both worries about the direction of education and their personal preferences for their child? Why are parents able to express such confidence in wanting AI in the classroom but don’t feel as though they can choose the best school for their child?
Unfortunately, that answer lies with the education, or lack thereof, regarding, well . . . education. While parents are overwhelmingly in favor of school choice options like education saving accounts (ESAs), vouchers, and even choosing a private or charter school over a public K-12, parents are not fully aware of school choice policies in their state. About half of parents are unsure whether their state offers an ESA program (52%). Another large share (46%) says the same about a school voucher program. A significant portion of parents are also unsure whether open enrollment (35%) and charter schools (26%) are available in their state.
Perhaps the key to choosing the best education for children lies in bettering education for adults. This is where EdChoice shines. Its staff are dedicated to providing high-quality information in a transparent and efficient manner—in fact, this survey is a perfect example of how their work can be used by the average American to educate themself on important issues regarding their child’s schooling. On the EdChoice website, you’ll find empirical research, national and state surveys, reviews, syntheses, working papers, and data dashboards. EdChoice also offers in-person trainings and webinars for legislators, parent campaign organizers, and other supporters who seek to learn more about the movement and desire to use their position to impact state or local policy decisions regarding education. Tailored data, policy, legal support and more to allies across the US are also available.
So before making decisions about your child’s schooling, know your options. EdChoice has excellent resources to get you started. No American family should feel forced to enroll their child in a school they aren’t happy with. EdChoice’s work reminds us all that there are alternative options for those who desire them; you just need to educate yourself on them.
