Poll: Is student learning tied to education spending?

According to a recent SoonerPoll, most Oklahomans do not believe that students will learn more if more money is spent on public schools. When asked if they agree with the statement 'If more money is spent on public schools in my district, students will learn more.' 63.6 percent of likely Oklahoma voters disagreed with the statement.

"The findings of the survey indicate that many voters are ready for reform in the school system that does not necessarily mean spending more money," Bill Shapard, CEO of SoonerPoll, said. "These results are consistent with the conservative values that most Oklahoman's hold in regards to government spending."

Further results found that Republicans are more likely to believe educational spending is not tied to student learning than Democrats (70.3 percent of Republicans compared to 57.3 percent of Democrats). In fact, Republicans were 16 points more likely to strongly disagree than Democrats, whose disagreement was much softer.

Interestingly, age played a role in how Oklahomans view education spending and student learning. Results of the poll indicate that the older the poll respondent, the stronger disagreement there was with the statement.

"Regardless of respondent ideology, the opinion that spending will not improve public education is consistent with research performed at the Brookings Institute," Dr. Keith Gaddie, SoonerPoll Vice President, said. "The Brookings Institute's study shows there is no relationship between spending in the classroom and student performance."

SoonerPoll.com, Oklahoma's public opinion pollster, conducted the scientific study using live interviewers by telephone of 1000 likely voters from Feb. 25 - March 8. This particular question was commissioned by the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs. The study has a margin of error of ±3.1 percent.

To see a PDF document containing all the questions asked by OCPA click here.