In a national survey, released today by Junior Achievement USA™ (JA) and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s National Chamber Foundation (NCF), U.S. high school juniors revealed their knowledge and perceptions of entrepreneurship, free enterprise and capitalism and how these factors will influence their future career choices. The Free Enterprise National Survey found that 64 percent of high school juniors were interested in starting or owning their own businesses, but the survey also revealed that many are concerned about the economy. This may result in fewer students choosing an entrepreneurial career path. However, high school juniors strongly believe it is important that high school students are taught about entrepreneurship, free enterprise and capitalism in school.
“Knowledge of the free enterprise system, its benefits to citizens and its relationship to job creation is important for young people across the nation, to the vitality of our communities and to the availability of a well-educated workforce,” said Jack E. Kosakowski, president and chief executive officer, Junior Achievement USA. “Junior Achievement programs reach more than 4 million students every year, but we must continue to expand these programs in an effort to educate our future leaders. As a result of this survey, JA will work with the National Chamber Foundation to strengthen our existing partnership around delivering entrepreneurship education programs.”
The Free Enterprise National Survey was conducted online in July and August 2011 by Harris Interactive on behalf of JA and NCF among 2,213 high school juniors. The survey’s results confirm the need for and value in providing entrepreneurship education for high school students, through both classroom-based and co-curricular learning opportunities. At least 9 in 10 juniors believe it is important to be taught about entrepreneurship, free enterprise and capitalism, yet less than half (45 percent) have been taught about entrepreneurship in school and 57 percent have been taught about free enterprise in school.
JA and NCF are committed to strengthening their relationship through support of Junior Achievement’s JA Be Entrepreneurial® program. Delivered by corporate and community volunteers, the JA Be Entrepreneurial program focuses on challenging high school students to start their own entrepreneurial venture through interactive classroom activities that provide relevant, hands-on experiences. In Central Florida, more than 78,000 young people participate in JA programs every year.
“This study reinforces the need to teach lessons in entrepreneurship to students now, here in our community,” said Craig Polejes, president of Junior Achievement of Central Florida. “JA programs empower students to make a connection between what they learn in school and how it can be applied in the real world.”
The Free Enterprise National Survey also found that while many juniors are interested in starting their own business, they are worried about the state of the economy. Seven in 10 high school juniors believe that the economy will either stay the same or get worse in the coming year, and 9 in 10 are concerned about future job prospects after they finish high school.
Additional findings from the Free Enterprise National Survey show:
· High school juniors believe that entrepreneurs play an important role in job creation and American success, and 64 percent are interested in starting or owning their own business someday. In fact, 15 percent of respondents had already started their own business, including businesses involving lawn services and babysitting. Of those students who had ever started their own business, 58 percent said it was for financial reasons.
· A majority of juniors understood the meaning of capitalism and free enterprise. Most have a positive view of capitalism (70 percent) and even more have a positive view of free enterprise (84 percent).
For an executive summary of survey results, log on to www.ja.org.
