A+ for us!

The ABC News/Washington Post poll is one of just six public opinion surveys to be awarded an A+ rating for methodology and accuracy by FiveThirtyEight this week, out of 430 surveys the polling analysis website reviewed. It’s a three-peat for the ABC/Post poll, produced for ABC by Langer Research Associates: We previously received A+ grades from FiveThirtyEight in 2016 and 2018 alike.

Our latest ABC News/Washington Post poll this past week covered public attitudes on impeachment, the 2020 election and the death of ISIS leader Abu Bakhar al-Baghdadi. Beyond coverage by ABC News and The Washington Post, media pickup included pieces in USA Today, on CNN (here and here) in Newsweek (here and here), on the news sites Axios, Politico and RealClearPolitics, in Bloomberg Government, the New York Post, The Christian Science Monitor, The Hill, Roll Call, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the Providence Journal and the (U.K.) Sun, among others.

Donald Trump’s approval rating dropped by 6 points in the most recent ABC News/Washington Post poll, with five Democratic contenders leading Trump in head-to-head matchups. The survey also included a look at the Democratic primary race in advance of the third debate and the issue of gun policy as Congress returned to Washington. It’s been picked by CNN, CNBC (here and here), MSNBC, USA Today (here and here), VoxNewsweek, Politico here and hereThe HillFiveThirtyEightthe New York PostThe Dallas Morning NewsThe Wall Street JournalThe New York TimesBloombergWashington MonthlyWashington ExaminerSalon, Business InsiderNewsmax, The Crime Report and the South China Morning Post, among others.

Frustrated by poor pay and underfunded schools, half of public school teachers nationally have seriously considered leaving the profession in the past few years and majorities say that given the opportunity, they’d vote to strike. These are just a few of the results from the 51st annual Phi Delta Kappa Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools painting a portrait of broad teacher discontent.

Among other notable results:

  • Sixty percent of teachers say they’re unfairly paid, and 55 percent say they’d vote to go on strike for higher pay.
  • Parents and the public overall mainly stand with them; 74 percent of parents and 71 percent of all adults say they would support a strike by teachers in their community for higher pay.
  • Seventy-five percent of teachers say the schools in their community are underfunded. Fifty-eight percent say they’d vote to strike for higher funding for school programs, and 52 percent say they’d support a strike for greater teacher say in academic policies on standards, testing and the curriculum.
  • A majority of teachers, 55 percent, would not want their child to follow them into the profession, chiefly citing inadequate pay and benefits, job stress and feeling disrespected or undervalued.

Now in its fourth consecutive year produced by Langer Research Associates, the PDK Poll includes a national random sample of public school teachers, adding their voices to those of parents and the general public on issues in public education. See media coverage by The Washington Post, CNBC, Forbes, The Hill, the American Federation of Teachers, the National Association of Secondary School Principals and Education Week Teacher, Education Dive, EdSurge, The 74, AJC, Education Writers Association, The College Fix and the CATO Institute, among others.

Donald Trump reached the highest job approval rating of his presidency in our latest ABC News/Washington Post poll, but faces tough matchups against top Democratic contenders in his bid for reelection. The survey also covered the 2020 Democratic field and views on abortion policy. Beyond ABC and the Post, the poll received widespread media coverage, including pickup in The Los Angeles TimesCNNUSA TodayNBC NewsFox NewsFiveThirtyEightMSNBCThe HillPoliticoCNBCSlateYahooThe New York Post, the New York Daily News, The IndependentAxiosMother Jones, Newsday, MarketWatchDaily Kos, and Christian Broadcasting News.

Digital Promise Global, an education innovation nonprofit, has recently released the results of its first national public opinion poll covering student potential and achievement, learner variability, tailored approaches to learning, the use of educational technology and what teachers rely on to do their work. The report explores differences and commonalities among public school parents, teachers and the public at large on these topics, among others.

The most notable results include:

  • At least 75 percent of public school parents, teachers and the American public alike believe most students are capable of reaching high levels of educational achievement – but only 19 to 29 percent say most students are reaching those levels today.
  • Vast majorities see tailored instruction as the “better way for students to learn,” with more than six in 10 feeling that way strongly.
  • Support for learner variability is seen as lacking, with only 35 percent of the general public, 42 percent of parents and 53 percent of teachers saying public schools currently do an excellent or good job in this area.
  • There’s broad support for the use of edtech in schools, even though few are convinced it makes a great difference in improving student learning outcomes.

Survey production and analysis was conducted by Langer Research Associates, with the report produced by Digital Promise Global’s Learner Variability Project. Read more about the report on the Digital Promise Global LVP site.

We released four analyses from our latest ABC News/Washington Post poll this past week, on views of Donald Trump and public reaction to the Mueller report, views of the 2020 Democratic candidates for president, Trump’s re-election prospects and immigration policy. In addition to use on ABC News platforms and in the Post, the pieces received wide pickup nationally and internationally. See, for example, coverage by Bloomberg NewsCNNCNBCDaily MailFox NewsPoliticoHuffPostThe Hill, the Indianapolis Star, the National ReviewNewsdayNewsweek, the Philadelphia InquirerVox, the Washington Examiner, the Chinese news outlet Xinhua and several Russian news outlets (herehere and here).

In our ABC News/Washington Post poll conducted shortly before the end of the latest government shutdown and two years into the Trump presidency, a majority of Americans continued to blame the partial government shutdown on President Donald Trump. Americans also expressed low confidence in Trump’s work across a range of other issues, although they similarly distrust congressional Democrats. These results were covered by CNN, FortunePBS, Newsweek, the Independent, the Boston Globe, the Chicago Tribune, The Japan Times, and Bustle, among others. The same poll also found a majority of Americans support the new Democratic House majority using its authority to obtain and release Trump’s tax returns, with coverage by CNNMSNBC, The Hill, Townhall, the Independent, Vox, the Jerusalem PostHuffPostNewsmax, and Press Herald.

Turning to 2020, our poll found no clear frontrunner for the Democratic nomination while a third of Republicans and Republican leaners oppose nominating Trump. These results have been picked up by CNNUSA Today, News OneNewsweekNew York Post, the Philadelphia InquirerPoliticoThe HillThe Week MagazineVox, the Washington Examiner, and the Washington Times in addition to coverage from ABC News and the Washington Post.

Our latest ABC News/Washington Post poll found that the public blamed President Trump and congressional Republicans for the partial federal government shutdown by a 53-29 margin over congressional Democrats, as well as gauging their feelings on the situation at the southern border. It’s been covered by AP, Fox News, USA TodayCNBC, PoliticoThe HillVoxUPIHuffPostQuartzSlateMother JonesBusiness InsiderFortuneNewsmax and the Washington Examiner, among others, in addition to coverage from ABC and the Washington Post.

See our 2018 Election Night exit poll analysis here, and our subsequent piece on “Blue Waves and White Bubbles” here. We’re pleased with our final estimate of the national congressional vote, 52-44 percent. The actual outcome at last report was 53-45 percent, for a total error of 2 points.