We’ve talked to and met educators across the country in communities large and small, urban and rural, and asked a question: Do our students feel seen?
When we meet with superintendents, principals, and teachers across the country, they share the same refrain: we want to do right by every student. However, the students whose voices most need to be heard to help reshape our systems are the very ones least often heard. Latino/a students, the largest and fastest-growing group in our schools, are telling us something urgent.
Students often share that they don’t think their teachers know them. The data in this report reveals sharp drops in perceived care, especially as students move from the close caring environments of classrooms in elementary schools to the highly structured environments of middle and high school. And the data are clear: care matters! In achievement, attendance, career and life goals, and health.