In this study 236 high school seniors in New York state answered a questionnaire, and fifteen were given a follow-up interview, concerning their perceptions of the English program. It was concluded that: (1) it is unlikely that any single comprehensive English program will meet the needs of all students; (2) teacher interests and values may be invalid means of determining the methods and content of English courses; (3) student contributions are valuable, but not definitive, in establishing curricula for meeting the needs of an entire group of students; (4) students might find English courses more valuable if they included the humanities and contemporary literature, and if verbal competence were related to academic and vocational aspirations; (5) the New York state Regents examination appears to stifle teacher creativity and student enthusiasm; (6) future studies might be more reliable if the scope of the sample were larger; (7) inclusion of mass media study might encourage more interest in English courses; and (8) girls felt more positively toward English courses than boys. (DI)