What educators, adolescents, and the general public have to say about the latest education conversations?
How did we accomplish this?
Pew Research Center conducted this study to much know how common K- 12 teachers, teenagers and the American people see topics related to race, sexual preference and gender identification playing out in the class.
The majority of the research in this report was based on a survey conducted online between October 17 and November 14, 2023 among 2, 531 people K-12 teachers in the United States. The K-12 teachers in public schools recruited through MDR Education are members of RAND’s American Teacher Panel, a nationally representative section. Survey information is weighted to state and national teacher faculties to account for differences in picking and reply to confirm they are official of the target population.
We polled 5, 029 U.S. people between November 9 and November 16, 2023 for the issues for the general public. The people surveyed are users of the Ipsos KnowledgePanel, a trusted online poll platform. Panel people are arbitrarily recruited through possibility- based picking, and families are provided with access to the Internet and technology if needed. The data is weighted to correspond to the U.S. adult population by sex, age, education, culture, and race, and other categories to ensure that the results of this study reflect a healthy mix part of the nation.
We conducted an online survey of 1, 453 U.S. teenagers from September 26 to October 23 through Ipsos for questions for teens. Ipsos recruited the teens via their parents, who were part of its KnowledgePanel. The survey was designed to be representative of U.S. teenagers living with their parents between the ages of 13 and 17 according to age, gender, race, and ethnicity, household income, and other factors. An independent committee of experts with a focus on helping to protect the rights of research participants reviewed and approved the survey on teenagers by an external institutional review board ( IRB), Advarra.
Here are the questions used for this report, along with responses, and the survey methodology.
Terminology
Those who do not identify as a race and are not Hispanic are included in the report’s references to White, Black, and Asian adults. Any race is a part of the history of mankind. The views and experiences of teachers and teens who are Asian American or part of other racial and ethnic groups are not analyzed separately in this report due to sample limitations. The report’s general population figures include information about these groups.
Those who lean toward a particular party are included in all references to party affiliation. Republicans include those who identify as Republicans and those who say they lean toward the Republican Party. Democrats include those who identify as Democrats and those who claim to lean toward the Democratic Party.
In the 2020 presidential election, whether the majority of those who live in the school district voted for Republican Donald Trump or Democrat Joe Biden determines how politically leaning the school districts are.
Amid national debates about what schools are teaching, we asked public K- 12 teachers, teens and the American public how they see topics related to race, sexual orientation and gender identity playing out in the classroom.
A sizable portion of teachers ( 41 % ) claim that these discussions have harmed their ability to perform their jobs. Only 4 % of respondents claim that these debates have had a positive impact, while 53 % claim that the impact has not been positive or negative or that they have not had an impact.
And 71 % of teachers say teachers themselves do n’t have enough influence over what’s taught in public schools in their area.
A majority of teachers, for example, claim that their state government has too much influence over this. More frequently than not, more people claim that the federal government, the local school board, and their parents have too much influence.
Most of the findings in this report come from a survey of 2, 531 U. S. public K- 12 teachers conducted Oct. 17- Nov. 14, 2023, using the RAND American Teacher Panel. The survey examines teachers ‘ opinions on:
- Race and LGBTQ issues in the classroom ( Chapter 1 )
- Current debates over what schools should be teaching and the role of key groups ( Chapter 2 )
It follows a parent survey from grades K to 12 that covered similar subjects in the fall of 2022.
Additionally, this report includes some findings from a survey of U.S. adults ( Chapter 4), as well as a survey of U.S. teens between the ages of 13 and 17 ( Chapter 3 ). For details about these surveys, refer to the Methodology section of this report. One of the most important findings:
- 38 % of teenagers ( including those who claim these topics have been brought up ) say they feel comfortable when issues involving racism or racial inequality are brought up in class. A smaller share ( 29 % ) say they feel comfortable when topics related to sexual orientation or gender identity come up.
- More than half of Americans believe parents should be able to prevent their children from learning about LGBTQ issues ( 54 % ) versus 34 % ).
What should students learn about gender identity and slavery, according to teachers?
We asked public K- 12 teachers what they think students should learn in school about two topics in particular:
- Whether the role of Black people in American society today is still affected by the legacy of slavery.
- whether a person’s gender at birth can be different from or be affected by their gender.
For these questions, elementary, middle and high school teachers were asked about elementary, middle and high school students, respectively.
The slavery legacy
The majority of teachers ( 64 % ) advise students to understand that Black people’s current status in American society is still affected by slavery.
About a quarter ( 23 % ) say students should learn that slavery is part of American history but no longer affects the position of Black people in American society. Just 8 % of students believe that they should completely disregard this subject when learning about it in school.
Teachers in elementary, middle, and high schools, in the majority, believe that students should be taught that Black Americans still have a ton of experience because of slavery.
Gender identity
Half of the public K-12 teachers say students should n’t learn about gender identity in school, specifically whether a person’s gender can be different from or is determined by their sex assigned at birth.
A third of teachers believe that students should be taught that they can still be a boy or a girl if their gender at birth is different.
A smaller share ( 14 % ) say students should learn that whether someone is a boy or a girl is determined by their sex at birth.
Views vary between teachers in elementary, middle, and high school. However, teachers at all three levels are more likely than ever to advise students that learning a person’s gender can be different from their sex at birth and that learning a person’s gender is determined by sex at birth.
Most elementary school teachers ( 62 % ) say students should n’t learn about gender identity in school. This is much higher than the proportion of teachers in middle and high school who say the same ( 45 % and 35 % respectively ).
What teens ‘ parents and teens say
Parents of K- 12 students are more divided on what their children should learn in school about these topics.
In the survey conducted in 2022, 49 % of parents said they would rather their children learn that slavery still has an impact on Black people’s status in American society, compared to 42 % who said they would rather their children learn that slavery no longer has an impact on Black Americans.
31 % of parents said they would prefer their children to learn that gender can be different from sex at birth when it comes to gender identity. An identical share said they would rather their children learn gender is determined by sex at birth. Another 37 % of parents believe that their children should not be taught about gender identity in school.
Similar to parents, teenagers and teachers are more divided on these issues. About half of teens ( 48 % ) say they’d rather learn that the legacy of slavery still affects the position of Black Americans today. Four out of ten people would prefer to learn that Black Americans are no longer affected by slavery.
Teenagers are essentially evenly divided on what they want to learn about gender identity. A quarter say they’d rather learn that a person’s gender can be different from their sex at birth, 26 % would prefer to learn that gender is determined by sex at birth. About half ( 48 % ) of students believe that gender identity should not be taught in school.
Read Chapter 3 of this report for more on teens ‘ opinions about what they prefer to learn about each of these subjects in school.
Should parents be able to opt their children out of learning about certain topics?
Even if the way these subjects are taught conflicts with the parents ‘ beliefs, the majority of public K-12 teachers (60 % ) claim that parents should not be able to opt their children out of learning about racism or racial inequality in school. A quarter of parents believe they should be able to forbid their children from learning about these subjects.
In contrast, more say parents should be able to opt their children out of learning about sexual orientation or gender identity ( 48 % ) than say parents should not be able to do this ( 33 % ).
Elementary and middle school teachers are more likely than high school teachers to agree that parents should be able to opt out of having children when it comes to issues involving race and LGBTQ issues.
How do teachers ‘ opinions differ from those of the general public?
Like teachers, Americans overall are more likely to say parents should be able to opt their children out of learning about sexual orientation or gender identity ( 54 % ) than to say they should be able to opt their children out of learning about racism or racial inequality ( 34 % ).
Overall, Americans are slightly more likely than teachers to believe that parents should be able to choose to opt their children out of both of these issues.
Read Chapter 4 of this report for more on the public’s opinions.
How often do topics related to race and LGBTQ issues come up in the classroom?
The majority of teachers who have taught for more than a year ( 68 % ) say that in their 2022- 23 classroom years, the topics of sexual orientation and gender identity have never or rarely been brought up. One in five ( 21 % ) of people claim to have heard these topics occasionally, and 8 % claim to have heard them frequently or very frequently.
Topics related to racism or racial inequality come up more frequently. The majority of teachers ( 56 % ) claim that these subjects are frequently or extremely frequently discussed in their classrooms, with 21 % saying so.
These subjects are more prevalent in secondary school classrooms than they are in elementary school.
How do teachers ‘ views differ by party?
Teachers ‘ opinions on how to deal with race and LGBTQ issues in the classroom vary depending on political affiliation, as is the case with parents of K-12 students and the general public.
- What should students learn about slavery: 85 % of teachers with Democratic and Democratic leaning views believe that Black people still have a voice in American society today. This compares with 35 % of Republican and Republican- leaning teachers who say the same.
- What gender identity topics should students learn: Democratic teachers are much more likely than Republican teachers to agree that students should learn that a person’s gender can be different from the sex they were given at birth ( 53 % vs. 5 % ). The majority of Republican teachers ( 69 % ) believe that students should n’t be exposed to gender identity in the classroom.
- Parents opting their children out of learning about these topics: 80 % of Republican teachers say parents should be able to opt their children out of learning about LGBTQ issues, compared with 30 % of Democratic teachers. And only 11 % of Democratic teachers agree with 47 % of Republican teachers that parents should be able to opt their children out of learning about racism and racial inequality.
A majority of public K-12 teachers ( 58 % ) identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party. About a third ( 35 % ) identify with or lean toward the GOP. Overall, there are more Republicans and Republicans in the country, with 47 % of Americans leaning Democratic or Republican.
