Epoch Survey Reveals Overwhelming Demand to Return Education Power to States, Parents

A new Epoch Times survey reveals overwhelming support among readers for reforming—and in many cases, eliminating—the Department of Education. Respondents strongly favored reducing the department’s workforce, transferring control of education policy to the states, and giving parents greater influence over school decisions. The poll, which drew over 31,000 responses, was conducted in the days leading up to President Donald Trump’s March 20 executive order, which launched the process of dismantling the Department of Education and returning educational authority to state governments. Since its establishment in the late 1970s, the Department of Education has spent more than $3 trillion. Yet, according to a White House fact sheet, academic performance has stagnated. Despite a 245 percent increase in per-pupil spending, math and reading scores have declined, and American students consistently rank behind peers in other developed nations....