Students were asked the following questions: Would [insert item] lead you to learn a lot more, a little more, or would it make no difference? And about how many of your teachers are like that now? Would you say most, some, or very few?
Bold type--Percent responding item would lead them to learn “a lot more”
Regular type--Percent responding “most” of their teachers are like item now
| High School Students | ||||||||||
| A teacher who... | General | Whites | African- Americans | Hispanics | Private School | |||||
| tries to make lessons fun and interesting | 78 | 24 | 79 | 25 | 76 | 25 | 78 | 23 | 84 | 39 |
| is enthusiastic and excited about the subject they teach | 71 | 29 | 71 | 28 | 72 | 32 | 71 | 32 | 74 | 43 |
| knows a lot about the subject they teach | 71 | 46 | 70 | 47 | 74 | 49 | 72 | 47 | 77 | 63 |
| treats their students with respect | 69 | 41 | 68 | 42 | 75 | 37 | 68 | 50 | 73 | 63 |
| gives students a lot of individual help with their work | 69 | 31 | 67 | 33 | 76 | 31 | 69 | 31 | 78 | 51 |
| uses hands-on projects and class discussion | 67 | 22 | 68 | 23 | 67 | 31 | 68 | 19 | 70 | 33 |
| explains lessons very carefully | 66 | 33 | 64 | 33 | 72 | 38 | 72 | 35 | 71 | 48 |
| challenges students to constantly do better and learn more | 66 | 33 | 63 | 33 | 79 | 42 | 69 | 36 | 74 | 51 |
| personally cares about his students as people | 64 | 30 | 62 | 30 | 68 | 31 | 66 | 31 | 71 | 58 |
| knows how to handle disruptive students | 46 | 29 | 45 | 28 | 52 | 35 | 44 | 35 | 52 | 44 |
| teaches by lecturing | 14 | 23 | 11 | 22 | 21 | 27 | 21 | 23 | 15 | 24 |
Suppose your school required students to learn more and tested them before they were allowed to graduate:1
| High School Students (Percent responding yes) | Adults | Teachers | |||||
| General | Whites | African- Americans | Hispanics | Private School | |||
| Do you think that most kids would pay more attention to their school work and study harder, or not? | 75 | 74 | 80 | 82 | 84 | 71 | 75 |
| Do you think that most kids would actually learn more, or not? | 73 | 72 | 79 | 75 | 75 | 72 | 75 |
| Do you think that more kids will drop out, or not? | 55 | 54 | 55 | 53 | 45 | 45 | 49 |
| Do you think that more kids will dislike education and resist learning, or not? | 53 | 51 | 55 | 56 | 56 | 38 | 27 |
| Do you think: Schools should expect inner-city kids to learn as much and achieve the same standards as kids from middle-class backgrounds? | 84 | 86 | 84 | 78 | 89 | 60 | 73 |
| or Should schools make things easier for inner-city kids because they come from poor backgrounds? 2 | 12 | 10 | 13 | 19 | 8 | 32 | 22 |
1 Data for adults and teachers taken from the Assignment Incomplete survey (1995). Question wording for adults and teachers: “Suppose public schools set higher academic standards and they also require kids to show they achieve those standards before they graduate.”
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2Data for adults taken from the Assignment Incomplete survey (1995). Data for teachers taken from the Given the Circumstances survey (1996). Question wording for adults and teachers: “Should public schools expect inner-city kids to achieve academic standards that are as high as standards for kids from affluent backgrounds, or should they make some allowances because inner-city kids come from disadvantaged backgrounds?” Results do not add up to 100% because answers of “not sure” are not shown.
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Copies of “Getting By: What American Teenagers Really Think About Their Schools” are available for $10, plus shipping and handling, from Public Agenda, 6 E. 39th St., New York, N.Y. 10016-0112 or by calling (212) 686-6610.
