In a year marked by so many divisions, the newest PDK poll on education shows that Americans don’t agree on the most basic question about the very purpose of a public school education. Is it to prepare students for work? To prepare them for citizenship? Or to prepare them academically?
Less than half (45%) of adult Americans say preparing students academically is the main goal of a public school education, and just one-third feel that way strongly. Other Americans split between saying the main purpose of public schools is to prepare students for work (25%) and for citizenship (26%). …
These findings come as part of the 48th Annual PDK Poll of the Public’s Attitudes Toward the Public Schools, which queried American adults on a range of challenges facing schools and communities, including educational goals, standards, priorities, and funding. CONT.
PDK International