Academic Proficiency of Students Who Reported Intentions of Majoring in Education

During the 1980s, researchers investigated the academic ability of teacher education students and high school students planning to major in education (Clark, 1989; Feistritzer, 1983; Fisher & Feldmann, 1985; Matczynski, Siler, McLaughlin, & Smith, 1988; Savage, 1983; Weaver, 1981). Researchers, responding to various publications such as A Nation at Risk (National Commission on Excellence in Education, 1983), Tomorrow's Teachers (Holmes Group, 1986) and the High School and Beyond Study (National Center for Educational Statistics, 1980), reported that individuals planning to major in education were less academically competent than students choosing other majors. Using Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores of students intending to major in education, Feistritzer (1983) and Weaver (1981) provided empirical support for these reports (Matczynski et al., 1988). Feistritzer (1983) and Weaver (1981) showed prospective education majors having SAT scores below the national mean. Savage (1983), comparing the academic qualifications (SAT scores and high school class standing) of female education students at a large land-grant research university to females at the same institution choosing other careers, concluded, the bad news seems to be that education is indeed attracting women with lower academic qualifications than most other fields (p. 17) Matczynski et al. (1988) argued against the validity of SAT scores as the sole indicator of academic competence among teacher education students. Comparing grade point averages (GPAs) in general education courses and secondary education content courses of education majors to noneducation majors at Clarion University, Matczynski et al. found, teacher education students performed as well, if not better, than non-teacher education students on most comparisons made (p. 36). They (Matczynski et al., 1988) added further support for the overall academic competence of teacher education students by reviewing research (Cohen, 1984; Fisher & Feldmann, 1985; Nelli, 1984; Olsen, 1985) that found similar overall results in undergraduate courses common to education and noneducation majors. Although these findings may provide teacher educators with evidence that education students possess at least average to above-average academic competence, Clark (1989) cautioned teacher educators against feelings of contentment. Limitations of the GPA studies included the target populations of colleges with student populations having lower average SAT scores compared to other colleges and universities, and a high percentage of education students enrolled in the individual colleges studied. Clark (1989) recommended that teacher education programs continue efforts to attract students with higher academic abilities and that teacher educators address the issue of how to strengthen the academic competence of education students. Addressing Clark's recommendation to strengthen academic competence of education students requires identification of students intending to major in education and their proficiency levels in mathematics, reading, and science compared with those of students intending to major in all other academic areas. In this study, we describe academic proficiency levels of a nationally representative sample of high school seniors indicating intention to major in education compared with those of students indicating intention to major in all other academic majors. We made specific comparisons with those intending to major in such areas as business, engineering, health occupations, and psychology. A secondary purpose was to provide a general description (including socioeconomic status, race, and gender) of a nationally representative sample of high school seniors intending to major in education compared with those of students intending to major in all other academic specializations. Method The National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES) designed the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88) as a nationally representative, time-series survey to supply data on secondary and postsecondary youth, including social and parental factors (Ingels, Scott, Rock, Pollack, & Rasinski, 1994). …