An advocate for school choice is not surprised that a new Gallup poll shows Americans think children educated in private schools receive excellent instruction, while they're not so enthusiastic about public schools.
Jeff Reed of the The Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice is not surprised by the findings. Given private schools' reputation of providing high-quality education, he says more states should provide access to those schools through voucher and scholarship programs.
"I think people recognize that, although there are a lot of good public schools out there, I think that people realize that the public schools by and large are not giving us the results that we need in order to be competitive in our global economy," Reed suggests.
Meanwhile, the increasing number of private school enrollment actually enhances public school performance.
"There's been a number of studies that look at the results, the academic outcomes of public schools affected by school voucher programs, and what those studies have shown is that when the voucher becomes available, when students suddenly leave those public schools, that creates an incentive for public schools to improve," he explains.
78 percent of those surveyed give independent, private schools a rating of "excellent" or "good." Only 37 percent of the rated public schools get that kind of feedback.