Table 1-12 | |||||||
School program representatives reporting various issues as serious problems for mathematics and science instruction, by school level: 2012 | |||||||
(Percent) | |||||||
Mathematics instruction | Science instruction | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Issues | Elementary | Middle | High | Elementary | Middle | High | |
Student issues | |||||||
High student absenteeism | 8 | 13 | 16 | 8 | 13 | 13 | |
Inappropriate student behavior | 10 | 16 | 10 | 9 | 15 | 8 | |
Low student interest in mathematics or science | 14 | 25 | 30 | 5 | 11 | 13 | |
Low student reading abilities | 22 | 24 | 20 | 16 | 19 | 19 | |
Teacher issues | |||||||
Insufficient time to teach mathematics or science | 13 | 12 | 10 | 27 | 17 | 10 | |
Lack of opportunities for teachers to share ideas | 15 | 14 | 9 | 20 | 16 | 13 | |
Lack of teacher interest in mathematics or science | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 2 | |
School issues | |||||||
Inadequate funds for purchasing equipment and supplies | 12 | 18 | 16 | 30 | 32 | 28 | |
Lack of parental support | 15 | 17 | 15 | 10 | 14 | 9 | |
SOURCE: Banilower ER, Smith PS, Weiss IR, Malzahn KA, Campbell KM, Weis AM, Report of the 2012 National Survey of Science and Mathematics Education (2013). Science and Engineering Indicators 2014 |