That finding from a new Public Agenda report presents a challenge to the policymakers, educators, business leaders and others who have been pushing in recent years to improve math and science education.

In a broad sense, parents support proposals to focus more on math and science, the report says, but a majority believe the amount of science and math their own children study is about right. What’s more, the number who are concerned about the lack of math and science has declined since 1994, from 48 percent to 32 percent.

Not surprisingly, students seem even less concerned than their parents about those two subjects. Only 25 percent say it’s a problem that there is not enough math and science in their school. And more than 40 percent say they would be “really unhappy” if they ended up in a career that required doing a lot of math or science.

There are some differences along racial lines in the student attitudes. African-American and Hispanic students are more likely than their white counterparts to say that the lack of math and science in their schools is a serious problem.

Jean Johnson, who directs the Public Agenda’s Education Insights initiative that includes the new “Reality Check 2006” report, says that business and government leaders concerned about this issue “need to get out there and rally the troops.”

“They need to help parents and kids understand the nature of the challenge to our economy and workforce. Right now, most American parents are complacent, and many kids underestimate the role that science and math will play in their future and the future of our economy.”

Rather than worrying about tough academic issues, parents and students focus more on the environment in school. For example, 73 percent of parents says “social problems and kids who misbehave” are pressing problems in their children’s high schools, while only 15 percent say the same about “low academic standards and outdated curricula.” Large majorities of parents—even higher among low-income parents—worry about protecting their children from drugs and alcohol and the negative influence of their peers.

When students were asked to rank their concerns, academic standards were well down the list. At the top: too many students who don’t respect teachers and who use bad language (64 percent), who cheat on assignments and tests (54 percent), and who cut class (46 percent). Only 28 percent felt “kids are not taught enough math and science” was a problem in their school.

The report also echoes some troubling findings from other international comparisons of student attitudes and achievement. While U.S. secondary students generally do not score well on international comparisons in math, they feel good about what they know. This survey found that about two-thirds of both boys and girls say they have learned a lot in their math classes.

As Public Agenda president Ruth Wooden puts it, “If 12th-graders continue to rank near the bottom internationally on math and science, and if too few students and parents are interested in these offerings, it will not even make a dent in the problem.”

The full report, “Reality Check 2006: Are Parents and Students Ready for More Math and Science?” is available online at www.publicagenda.org.