MPG Releases 8th Wave of Shah Foundation Survey of Boston Public School Parents
This is the 8th of multiple waves of surveys of parents of Boston Public School students going back to 2021. This one-of-a-kind longitudinal study is funded by the Shah Foundation and conducted by The MassINC Polling Group. Each wave’s questionnaire includes a series of repeat questions as well as new and timely content. The series takes a detailed look at how parents rate their schools, educators, administrators, the curriculum available to their children, as well as how engaged and involved they feel with their children’s education. The surveys have also focused on issues such as school safety, transportation, absenteeism, food options, and more. The results have been widely reported in local and regional media. Each wave is analyzed cross-sectionally, examining how different demographics of parents view these issues, as well as longitudinally as a study of changing attitudes over time.
Methodology
These results are based on 8 waves of a survey of public-school parents in Boston. Live telephone and online interviewing were conducted in English and Spanish for Wave 1 July 15 – August 2, Wave 2 November 9 – November 21, 2021, Wave 3 March 22 – April 12, 2022, Wave 4 July 21 - August 4, 2022, Wave 5 November 16 – 28, 2022, Wave 6 March 22 – April 10, 2023, Wave 7 July 17 – August 3, 2023, and Wave 8 November 13 – 29, 2023. Telephone respondents were reached by both landline and cell phone. Oversamples of Black, Latino, and Asian or Pacific Islander respondents were obtained to bring the total interview count up to at least 200 for Black and Latino parents, and at least 100 AAPI parents. Results within race and ethnicity were weighted to age, gender, and education level for each group. Groups were then combined and weighted to the population parameters by race for the city as a whole. The first two waves were sponsored by Populace, and subsequent waves by The Shah Foundation.