Stats That Stick: October 6, 2010

On average, students in the U.S. spend 6 1/2 hours a day in the classroom for 180 days. According to the International Bureau of Education, students in Japan and South Korea have a 196-day school year. -The Southern Illinoisan

Among the cohort of students in the first-grade class of 1999–2000 who had progressed to eighth grade in the 2006–07 school year (representing about 80 percent of the eighth-grade class of 2006–07), 33 percent were enrolled in an algebra class in the eighth grade and 6 percent were enrolled in an advanced mathematics course other than algebra (i.e., algebra II, geometry, or integrated or sequential mathematics). Forty-four percent were taking an introduction to algebra or pre-algebra class, and 17 percent were in a general mathematics course, which is typically intended for students who are not yet ready for pre-algebra. -National Center for Education Statistics  

More young (20 to 34-year-old) African American men without a high school diploma or GED are currently behind bars (37 percent) than employed (26 percent).-Pew Charitable Trusts

A U.S. Department of Education study found that bullying and harassment affect nearly one in every three American schoolchildren in the sixth through 10th grades. Another study estimated that 60,000 American students skip school each day because they fear being bullied. -The Philadelphia Inquirer

While only 25% of kids have read a book on a digital device (including computers), many more (57% of kids age 9-17) are interested in doing so. When asked if they would read more books for fun if they had access to eBooks, one-third of kids age 9-17 of kids said yes, including frequent readers (34%), moderately frequent readers (36%), and even infrequent
readers (27%; PAGES 14–16). -Scholastic