Glaring omission from DOE's presentation of latest survey results

1.    The DOE just released the results of the 2011-2012 Learning Environment Survey.  For the fifth year in a row – since the survey was first given -- parents said that smaller classes were the change they would most like to see in their children’s schools, substantially topping the field of ten choices at 23 percent. (See the responses to question nine here or below.)

And yet for the first time since the survey has been given, the DOE omitted the answers to this question from their summary slide presentation. 

See, for example, last year’s power point, showing the results of this question since 2009:

During his press conference in 2007, the first year of the survey, Bloomberg appeared to minimize the overwhelming preference of parents for smaller classes in his power point by lumping the answers of four different options as “program enhancements.”

This obvious evasion prompted some comments in the press as well as spirited questioning of Jim Liebman, the author of the presentation, by Patrick Sullivan at a PEP meeting. (See this video.)

But this year for the first time, the DOE left out the results of this question from their analysis altogether, either because they don’t want to bother to pretend anymore that they care what we think or they are trying to prevent the media from noting that despite our clear priorities, class sizes have risen for the last four years in a row, and are now the largest in the early grades in 13 years. 

Clearly, Bloomberg does not care about our choices, no matter what he may claim.