One of the most common concerns over education is a lack of funding for schools, but a new poll released Friday shows nearly two-thirds of Americans are most concerned about other issues like parental involvement and a lack of discipline in schools.
A Rasmussen Reports telephone survey found 32 percent of Americans believe a lack of funding is a major problem for public schools -- a number which has increased in recent months.
Americans don't see public funding as the only major issue facing public schools. Twenty percent say not enough parental involvement is the chief problem, and nearly the same amount (19 percent) say a lack of discipline is the chief concern for public schools. Fifteen percent of Americans see bad curriculum as the biggest problem.
Teachers generally seem to be off the hook: only 6 percent see bad teachers as the biggest problem for schools.
But most Americans feel the lack of discipline is still a looming problem for American schools and believe discipline in public schools is too easy.
Over half -- 64 percent -- of all adults think discipline is lacking.
There's not full confidence in teachers maintaining that discipline, either. Over three-quarters (78 percent) think it's harder for teachers to maintain discipline in the classroom these days.
But while parents see discipline as being too easy, Florida tends to discipline at a much higher rate than other states -- according to a new report from the University of California Los Angeles, Florida suspends students at a higher rate than any other state in the entire country.
Nearly 3.5 million public school students were suspended out of school at least once in 2011-12, a number greater than one student suspended for every public school teacher in America.
To put this in perspective, the number of students suspended in just one school year could fill all of the stadium seats for nearly all the Super Bowls ever played -- (the first 45), read the report.
Nineteen percent of Florida secondary students get suspended, the highest in the nation, said the report. At the elementary level, 5.1 percent of Floridas young students get suspended overall. The average national suspension rate for elementary school students was only 2.6 percent.
The high suspension rate could spell trouble for Florida students. Research shows students who are suspended even once have a higher likelihood of dropping out of school, and a report released last year found Floridas graduation rate was 5 percent lower than the national average at 75 percent.
The high number of students suspended ... should be of grave concern to all parents, educators, taxpayers, and policymakers, read the UCLA report.
Reach Tampa-based reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen
