By Scot Lehigh
(From The Boston Globe, April 3rd, 2013)
AS THE race to succeed Tom Menino takes shape, compelling new developments should put education reform front and center in the city’s political debate.
The first is growing anxiety about the city’s education system. New polling data show that the quality of education has emerged as the chief concern for Boston voters — and that the public has come to see charter schools as a vital part of the educational landscape.
Indeed, education outranked both jobs and crime, with nearly half of those in the survey — commissioned by an education-reform group — listing it as one of the top two priorities that Boston leaders should focus on. Three-quarters of likely voters said a mayoral or City Council candidate’s position on K-12 education would be a very important consideration for them.
Almost as many — 73 percent — said they supported charters, with only 18 percent opposing them. If faced with a choice between sending their children to a Boston public school or a charter school, slightly more than half said they would choose a charter, while a little fewer than a third said they would favor a district school. Parents of school-age children were even more inclined to say they’d opt for a charter.
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