Why do some schools in high-poverty communities produce remarkable stories of success while others fail? This study, conducted by Public Agenda and sponsored by the Ohio Business Roundtable, the Ohio Department of Education and The Ohio State University, attempts to shed light on this fundamentally important question by talking directly to…

Surprisingly, given the level of leadership anxiety about math and science education in the United States today, national research conducted by Public Agenda shows that the number of parents who worry about whether local schools are teaching enough math and science has declined since the mid-nineties. In 1994, 52 percent of parents said that it…

This study details parents' and students' current thinking about math, science and technology (MST) education and their satisfaction with the existing curriculum which most experts see as vastly below world-class standards. The study finds just 25% of Kansas/Missouri parents think their children should be studying more math and science; 70% think…

The American Diploma Project, an influential consortium that includes Achieve, Inc., The Education Trust, and the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation believes that expectations about what youngsters learn in high school must be raised dramatically. According to the group, "the diploma has lost its value because what it takes to earn one is disconnected…

This report is the third in a series of "Reality Check" reports finds that five years into the implementation of the No Child Left Behind Act and over a dozen years into the so-called standards movement in American education, the public now sees these reforms as "necessary, but not sufficient." This is consistent across a number of indicators…

This is the fourth in a series of reports from Reality Check 2006, an ongoing set of tracking surveys on education issues. Reality Check surveys attitudes among public school parents, students, teachers, principals and superintendents on a regular basis. In surveys on education, it is not uncommon for the public, parents and teachers to see…

There is compelling evidence that organized, structured activities during the out-of-school hours play a valuable and a highly valued role in the lives of the nation's young people, but low-income and minority families are far more likely to be dissatisfied with the quality, affordability and availability of options in their communities. This…