Classes of 2004-2008 Poll on Curriculum and Politics in the Classroom
A poll conducted in January 2007 by Public Opinion Strategies of Alexandria, VA asked students and alumni from the 3,300 members of the classes of 2004- 2008 about curriculum and politics in the classroom. 478 responded with a very robust margin of error of ± 4.45%.
A Key Finding from the poll:
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While students and alumni say that overall they feel their Colgate education prepared them for their chosen career, majorities (66%, 62%, 55% respectively) responded that the core curriculum in economics, math, foreign language were inadequate. 47% said science classes and 41% said American history and civics classes were inadequate. Only literature and writing scored as adequate preparation (89%, 91% respectively).
More than 3,300 students and recent alumni were invited in four e-mails to participate in the survey. Participants could only respond once and were blinded to the polling company, meaning particular responses cannot be linked to a specific person. The number of respondents and the margin of error shows the survey to be quite robust. (If the poll was repeated, the results would be the same by plus or minus 4.45%)
Response from Colgate University on the poll: "The Public Opinion Strategies poll concludes that the core curriculum does not provide an adequate foundation in economics, math, and foreign languages. Core-curricula (at Colgate and other institutions) are not designed to provide college-level instruction in these areas." 04/04/2007