Most in US agree public schools on wrong track — but not on what to teach, poll finds
A majority of people in the U.S. believe that public schools are headed in the wrong direction based on the topics taught in class, a new poll finds.
The public is especially divided over whether U.S. public schools should be trusted to teach about racism, according to a recent poll from Selzer & Company on behalf of the Grinnell College National Poll.
“We find that the public is divided over whether the schools can be trusted to teach about racism and that these concerns have fueled the sentiment that schools are on the wrong track,” Cori Jakubiak, associate professor of education at Grinnell College, said in a news release.
About 64% of adults believe schools are on the wrong track against only 24% who think schools are going in the right direction, the poll shows.
Over 80% of Republicans agree schools are headed in the wrong direction — compared with 44% of Democrats.
About 43% of adults said they don’t trust schools with teaching about racism in class.
Most respondents trust teachers with other decisions such as choosing appropriate library books for students or responding to potentially violent children, the poll shows.
A majority of adults believe it is essential to teach reading, math and writing, American history, home economics and budgeting, and useful job skills at school.
Other subjects were considered important, the poll shows, but not “essential.”
The poll also found that:
Respecting people of different races, being an independent thinker and having respect for authority are all values that the majority of people in the U.S. believe should be instilled by teachers.
About a third of adults believe patriotism should be taught in class.
Almost 70% of respondents said colleges and universities should not be allowed to take the race of applicants into consideration in admission decisions.
The poll was conducted by phone from March 15 to 20 with 1,002 adults in the U.S. The results in this poll have a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, according to the poll’s methodology.
This story was originally published March 23, 2022 at 9:00 AM with the headline "Most in US agree public schools on wrong track — but not on what to teach, poll finds."
