BIGGEST PROBLEMS FACING LOCAL SCHOOLS
The 29th Annual
Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll
Of the Public's Attitudes
Toward the Public Schools
Illustration by Fred Bell
BIGGEST PROBLEMS FACING LOCAL SCHOOLS |
The 29th Annual Illustration by Fred Bell |
|
Efforts at school improvement must, of course, address the problems the public schools face. In all recent polls the public has been asked to indicate the biggest problem facing the local public schools. This year a follow-up question was asked to determine whether the public feels the problems faced by urban schools are more serious than those faced by their nonurban counterparts. Sixty-nine percent said they believe the problems that urban schools face are either much more serious or somewhat more serious.
This year ''lack of discipline'' and ''lack of financial support'' were mentioned by 15% of the respondents respectively as the most serious problems facing local public schools. Use of drugs, designated the number-one problem in last year's poll, was mentioned by 14% of respondents this year, and fighting/violence/gangs was mentioned by 12%. These four problems were the only ones to reach double figures.
One caution needs to be offered relative to the findings reported. The question requires respondents to identify a problem, and they do not have a list from which to choose. That is undoubtedly why so many different problems are mentioned and why the percentage of mentions is so small. (Eleven other problems were mentioned by 2% of respondents.)
The first question:
What do you think are the biggest problems with which the public schools in this community must deal?
National Totals |
No Children in School |
Public School Parents |
Nonpublic School Parents | |||||
'97 |
'96 |
'97 |
'96 |
'97 |
'96 |
'97 |
'96 | |
| Lack of discipline/more control | 15 |
15 |
15 |
16 |
12 |
12 |
22 |
18 |
| Lack of financial support/funding/money | 15 |
13 |
15 |
14 |
14 |
13 |
4 |
7 |
| Use of drugs/dope | 14 |
16 |
14 |
17 |
14 |
14 |
9 |
12 |
| Fighting/violence/gangs | 12 |
14 |
12 |
14 |
12 |
15 |
16 |
17 |
| Overcrowded schools | 8 |
8 |
6 |
6 |
10 |
11 |
17 |
15 |
| Concern about standards/quality of education | 8 |
4 |
7 |
4 |
8 |
4 |
10 |
9 |
| Pupils' lack of interest/poor attitudes/truancy | 6 |
5 |
6 |
5 |
6 |
6 |
3 |
4 |
| Difficulty getting good teachers/quality teachers | 3 |
3 |
3 |
3 |
4 |
3 |
* |
3 |
| No problems | 2 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
3 |
7 |
* |
3 |
| Miscellaneous | 9 |
9 |
9 |
8 |
8 |
10 |
13 |
11 |
| Don't know | 10 |
13 |
13 |
15 |
6 |
9 |
4 |
10 |
| *Less than one-half of 1%. | ||||||||
The second question:
Just your impression, are the problems faced by the public schools in urban areas much more serious, somewhat more serious, somewhat less serious, or much less serious than those faced by the public schools in nonurban areas?
National Totals |
No Children in School |
Public School Parents |
Nonpublic School Parents | |
| Much more serious | 40 |
40 |
40 |
43 |
| Somewhat more serious | 29 |
29 |
30 |
32 |
| Somewhat less serious | 16 |
16 |
17 |
16 |
| Much less serious | 7 |
6 |
7 |
5 |
| Don't know | 8 |
9 |
6 |
4 |
Last updated: 25 August 1997
URL: http://www.pdkintl.org/kpoll97c.htm
Contact: bucheri@pdkintl.org