WASHINGTON — American young people aspire to more education than they did 10 years ago, and more high school students are taking courses to prepare them for college preparatory classes, a new Education Department study shows.
But their performance in mathematics, science and reading still has not improved significantly.
The percentage of sophomores who hoped to get a college or postgraduate degree increased from 41% to 50% from 1980 to 1990.
"They are getting the message that you aren't born smart, you get smart by stretching your mind," Education Secretary Richard W. Riley said in releasing the report, "Youth Indicators 1993."
"So there is something to be thankful for as we prepare for this Thanksgiving weekend. More young people are finishing high school and more young people, a majority of 54%, are now taking college preparatory courses."
The percentage of sophomores who hoped to get four-year college diplomas increased to 60% in 1990 from 41% in 1980 and those who want to earn post-graduate degrees jumped from 18% to 27%.
And more students, especially members of minority groups, were taking challenging academic courses in high school.
The percentage of 17-year-old black students enrolled in college preparatory or strong academic programs instead of vocational or general programs increased from 37% in 1982 to 51% in 1990. The same trend was apparent among Latino 17-year-olds, whose participation increased from 28% to 40% over the same period.
"I am happy to say more and more of our young people are all too aware that what they learn will define what they earn in the future," Riley said.
But paying for that education has become more expensive. After adjustments for inflation, charges for tuition, room and board increased 44% at public four-year colleges and 64% at private four-year colleges from the 1980-1981 to 1992-1993 school years.
The proportion of all 16- to 24-year-olds who dropped out of high school before graduation fell slightly from 1980 to 1991, but the dropout rate for blacks decreased more notably, from 19% in 1980 to 14% in 1991. The Latino dropout rate, however, was near its highest level, at more than 35%. The percentage of dropouts 16 to 24 who were employed dropped from 44% in 1980 to 36% in 1992.
The study also indicated improved reading proficiency among black and Latino students and a narrowing of the academic gap between them and Anglo peers.
