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Classroom Context: Teacher Major/Minor

As part of the 2009 mathematics assessment, teachers of fourth- and eighth-graders were asked about their undergraduate and graduate education in mathematics as well as in other subject areas. The tables below, which focus only on mathematics and general education degrees earned, provide the percentages and scale scores of students whose teachers responded within each category shown.

Grade 4
Grade 8

More than 90 percent of fourth-graders had teachers who reported not having an undergraduate major or minor in mathematics education or mathematics.

Did you have a major, minor, or special emphasis in any of the following subjects as part of your undergraduate coursework?

  Percentage of students
Subject Major Minor/special emphasis Neither
Mathematics education 1 6 92
Mathematics 1 7 92
Other mathematics-related subject such as statistics 1 3 96
Education (including elementary or early childhood) 62 10 28

 

Did you have a major, minor, or special emphasis in any of the following subjects as part of your graduate coursework?

  Percentage of students
Subject Major Minor/special emphasis Neither
Mathematics education 1 4 95
Mathematics # 2 97
Other mathematics-related subject such as statistics # 2 98
Education (including elementary or early childhood) 42 7 51

# Rounds to zero.
NOTE: Detail may not sum to total because of rounding. See complete data for teacher undergraduate major or minor in mathematics education, mathematics, other mathematics-related subject, or education. See complete data for teacher graduate major or minor in mathematics education, mathematics, other mathematics-related subject, or education.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), 2009 Mathematics Assessment.

Browse questionnaires for the NAEP assessments.