| |
Reality Check 2000
Nearly every state has imposed tougher academic standards on public schools, but half of teachers say that hasn't changed what they expect from students, according to Public Agenda's latest Reality Check survey. But while parents and other stakeholders admit they haven't seen much change as a result of tighter rules and tougher tests, they're not ready to back away from the strategy - at least not yet.
This is the third Reality Check survey, part of a series of public opinion surveys designed to track what impact the drive to improve education standards is having on the people most directly affected: the teachers, parents and students living under new standards, and the employers and college professors who should see the results.
In many areas, there hasn't been much change from the previous two surveys. Employers and college professors still remain dissatisfied with skills of young people, while teachers and students suggest that many schools still haven't adopted the policies advocated by reformers. Parents are generally content, but their perceptions of their children's skills are much more optimistic than those of, say, employers.
One of the key debates this year among educators has been the fear that the public would turn against higher standards as more students are held back, forced to attend summer school, or fail "high-stakes" tests. There's little evidence of that in Reality Check. Solid majorities of all groups — even students — say its better for a child to be left back than be promoted without having the necessary skills.
Reality Check findings include:
 |
Finding One:
Employers and college professors remain highly dissatisfied with students' basic skills, but both groups say their computer skills are improving.
|
|
Finding Two:
All groups — employers, professors, teachers, parents, and students — continue to endorse many important principles behind standards reform. Large majorities of parents, employers, and professors (and most teachers) support requiring students to pass standardized tests for promotion. But most parents say it would be unfair to base promotion on the results of one single test.
|
|
Finding Three:
Reality Check suggests that many schools have either not adopted some changes advocated by reformers, or that many teachers, parents, and students are unaware of them.
|
|
Finding Four:
Parents continue to express confidence and satisfaction in their children's academic experience, but their judgment is often jarringly different from that of employers and professors.
|
|
Finding Five:
Reality Check shows that few parents have a solid base of information about how well their child or their child's school performs compared with others, but parents who are familiar with school report cards are much more knowledgeable.
|
|
Finding Six:
Teachers take a markedly different perspective on many issues related to standards, testing, promotion, and accountability.
|
|
Finding Seven:
Teachers believe that most of their colleagues are highly qualified, and that low pay is the chief obstacle to attracting and keeping top-notch college graduates. Parents, employers, and professors agree that low pay is the major hurdle, but these groups are less laudatory about the current teaching corps.
|
Reality Check is conducted in association with Education Week and funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts and the GE Fund. To see additional findings and the full text of the report, visit the Education Week presentation of the research. Online presentations are also available for Reality Check '99 and Reality Check '98.
For a review of recent opinion research from Public Agenda and other organizations on academic standards in public schools, download a copy of Standards and Accountability: Where the Public Stands. (To read the PDF version you must download and install the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.) For a broader view of public attitudes and reform proposals about public schools, visit our issue guide on Education.
|
