The 57^th Annual PDK Poll

Analysis

Eroding Confidence in Public Schools?

Between our 1998 and 2005 polls, we asked the American public about their support for using public funds to provide access to private schools for children. Our results showed a range of support, between 33-44%. We asked the question again in 2007, including religious schools, where 50% of parents supported using public finding. In 2020, 56% of parents (and 53% of the general public) supported the use of public funds for private schools and 50% of parents supported the use of public funds for religious schools.

In this year’s poll, 59% of parents supported using public funding so that their child could attend a private or religious school. Among Republicans, 71% supported the use of public funding to send their child to a non-public school versus 47% of support from Democrats. Independents led in support of using public funding for non-public schools, at 84%.

For over twenty years, we have asked respondents to grade their community’s schools and the nation’s public schools with a letter grade (A-D, Failing). Among the poll’s results from over twenty years of data, the 57^th annual poll showed decreased support for the nation’s schools. 43% of respondents gave their own community’s schools a letter grade of A or B, down from 53% in 2013. Only 13% of respondents gave the nation’s public schools an A or B rating, down from 26% in 2004.

Support for charter schools and lab schools was not as high as in past PDK Polls. This year, 46% of respondents supported funding charters or lab schools, which typically receive public funding but may have different oversight. Support for charter or lab schools was highest among Democrats (51%), and nearly the same for independents and Republicans (44% and 45%, respectively). A 2023 Stanford University study highlighted increased performance of charter schools over public schools, after past reports of lackluster performance.

The public’s approval of charter schools was higher in previous PDK polls. In 2013, for example, support for charters was at 68%. One reason may be that other programs that give parents money to attend private or religious schools provide a different kind of alternative. 

Eliminating the Department of Education

President Trump campaigned on eliminating the U.S. Department of Education, which among other things, is tasked with the dispersion of federal funds to states and districts, in addition to providing support for appeals of civil rights violations, of import to some families with students receiving special education services. The Trump administration has discussed giving more supervision of schools to state departments of education as part of the federal closure.

Only 12% of respondents strongly support the elimination of the U.S. Department of Education, with 66% opposing or strongly opposing closure. Interestingly, 34% of male respondents supported the agency’s elimination, versus 9% of female respondents. Attitudes different along political lines, with 46% of Republicans strongly supporting or supporting elimination of the department, versus 23% of independents, and 0% of Democrats.

Among our respondents, 19% believed eliminating the department would have a positive impact on public education, with 65% believing the opposite. 6% of respondents thought that eliminating the department would have no impact.

Teacher Salaries

School districts depend upon a combination of state, local, and federal funds to support their budgets. Personnel salaries are among the largest component of a school district’s budget. The National Education Association’s report on educator pay (2025) reports a national average starting salary for new teachers of $46,526 and an average national teacher salary of $72,030. They report that despite record-level increases in some states, that “teacher pay has failed to keep up with inflation over the past decade.” The effect on teacher salaries is that teachers are making “5% less than they did ten years ago.”

The 2018 PDK Poll revealed that 66% of the American public thought that teacher salaries were too low. In this year’s poll, that number shrunk to 64%, with 20% feeling that teacher salaries were “just about right” and only 1% believing that salaries are too high.

Using 2024 data, World Population Review reports the average teacher starting salary by state ranges between $58,409 (California) and $42,492 (Mississippi). The differences in pay between states has a relationship to different regional costs of living, but a 2018 report suggests there are other factors to explain the differences. For comparison, the World Population Review also publishes a livable wage chart by state, highlighting the minimum salary for a single adult with no children. The livable wage is defined as “the income required to cover basic family needs without reliance on outside assistance.”

It is important to note that our question asked respondents to consider teacher pay as it relates within their community, and that the regional breakdown of respondents was collected by region and not by state: 24% reported living in the West, 39% in the South, 17% in the Northeast, and 20% in the Midwest.

Across political ideologies, Democrats led in the belief that teacher salaries are too low (73%) versus 62% for independents and 39% for Republicans. 92% of our respondents believed addressing teacher pay is an important issue.

Cell Phone Policies and AI in the Schools

According to a May 2025 report, twenty-one states have instituted statewide policies or policy mandates around cell phone access in public schools. In this year’s poll, we wanted to see how the American public felt about access to cell phones in schools.

A complete ban on cellphone use throughout the school was supported by 40% of respondents; 46% supported access to cellphones outside of classroom activities such as during lunch or in-between classes. 11% of respondents do not support a cellphone ban, especially if use of the device helps students academically. Nevertheless, 86% of Americans support some kind of cellphone restriction for students during the school day. 

In the 2024 PDK Poll, we asked all respondents about their support for the use of artificial intelligence in education. This year’s support for AI waned, most significantly for the purpose of assisting teachers in the creation of lesson plans.

Providing access to student data to AI software, including student grades, assessment data, or other personal information was not supported by 68% of parent respondents. 

Do parents have a voice?

When we asked those who identified as parents if they are satisfied with the amount of say they have in their child’s education, 70% reported being satisfied (30% very satisfied and 40% somewhat satisfied). However, disparities in satisfaction emerge along political lines and whether or not their children attend a private or public school. 78% of parents represented in this year’s survey had children in public schools, versus 5% in private, and 1% reported their children being homeschooled.

What is important to the American public in 2025?

In this year’s poll, many of the potential education priorities listed garnered strong support. Among the highest priorities are initiatives to make students feel like they belong as part of the school community, career and technical education programs, addressing teacher shortages, and improving teacher pay. The most support was given to providing security measures to keep both students and teachers safe in America’s schools. 

There was the least amount of consensus around support for DEI programming or initiatives: 61% of U.S. adults say diversity, inclusion, and equity initiatives are either very important (49%) or somewhat important (12%). 89% of Democrats said it is very/somewhat important compared to 22% of Republicans and 62% of independents.

About the PDK Poll

The PDK Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools has been a steady reflection of U.S. opinion about public education since 1969. PDK produces the annual poll as part of its mission to engage educators and serve schools so every student thrives. The PDK Poll results provide researchers with some of the finest longitudinal data on how the public feels about the nation’s schools and education policies. Education policy makers use the poll’s findings to inform their decisions, and educators across the country use the results to guide planning and action in their communities. The 2025 PDK Poll was administered by The Wason Center for Civic Leadership.

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