Parents Look for Real-Time Student Data in Education Survey
Most parents who participated in a newly released education survey--about 88 percent--said they believe real-time access to student data is either "extremely important" or "very important." But only about 70 percent said their children's schools were good at supplying such information.
Ed tech developer GlobalScholar released the findings at the FETC 2012 National Conference, which is taking place this week in Orlando, FL. The survey itself was conducted by Harris Interactive.
The survey, which polled 1,148 parents of school-aged children, found that respondents on the whole believe they're well versed in what their children are learning in school. According to the research, 67 percent indicated they are "extremely or very knowledgeable about the subjects their child was studying," and 74 percent characterized themselves as "extremely or very knowledgeable about their child's homework."
"We conducted the survey to better understand how parents get information about their child's education and how well parents and schools are engaged with each other to stay informed about students," said John Lawler, president of GlobalScholar, in a prepared statement. "We were particularly glad to discover that parents were generally very pleased with their children's schools, thanks to the heroic work of our nation's dedicated teachers who don't always have the tools they need to do their jobs effectively. The results of the survey were revealing and we decided to release the results because we believe the data will be useful to educators, policy makers and others devoted to improving the education each and every child receives."
GlobalScholar is the developer of the Pinnacle Suite, which comprises a student information system, a gradebook, curriculum and assessment tools, analytics, a collaborative learning environment, and other tools. The company also provides a range of education services for K-12, including student and parent resources, online tutoring, search services aimed at helping students find schools to attend.
Other findings from the survey:
- Parents overwhelmingly approve of their children's schools, with 79 percent scoring them with "A" or "B" marks overall;
- Among high school parents surveyed, 34 percent indicated their biggest fear for their children's education was that they would not be prepared for adulthood when they left school; and
- Among all parents surveyed, 22 percent indicated that their biggest fear for their children's education was that they would be "under-challenged" in school.
Note that the survey was not based on a probability sample and did not include a sampling error estimate. Details about methodology can be obtained from GlobalScholar directly.
GlobalScholar is exhibiting in booth 817 at the FETC 2012 National Conference, which runs through Jan. 26. The parent survey can be accessed with registration on GlobalScholar's site.