The Condition of Education 2008

NCES 2008-031 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK The Condition of Education 2008 June 2008 Michael Planty William Hussar Thomas Snyder Stephen Provasnik National Center for Education Statistics Grace Kena Rachel Dinkes Angelina KewalRamani Jana Kemp—Child Trends Education Statistics Services Institute– American Institutes for Research Production: Barbara Kridl Managing Editor Andrea Livingston Senior Editor MPR Associates, Inc. NCES 2008-031 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION U.S. Department of Education Margaret Spellings Secretary Institute of Education Sciences Grover J. Whitehurst Director National Center for Education Statistics Mark Schneider Commissioner Th e National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the primary federal entity for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data related to education in the United States and other nations. It fulfi lls a congressional mandate to collect, collate, analyze, and report full and complete statistics on the condition of education in the United States; conduct and publish reports and specialized analyses of the meaning and signifi cance of such statistics; assist state and local education agencies in improving their statistical systems; and review and report on education activities in foreign countries. NCES activities are designed to address high-priority education data needs; provide consistent, reliable, complete, and accurate indicators of education status and trends; and report timely, useful, and high-quality data to the U.S. Department of Education, the Congress, the states, other education policymakers, practitioners, data users, and the general public. Unless specifi cally noted all information contained herein is in the public domain. We strive to make our products available in a variety of formats and in language that is appropriate to a variety of audiences. You, as our customer, are the best judge of our success in communicating information eff ectively. If you have any comments or suggestions about this or any other NCES product or report, we would like to hear from you. Please direct your comments to: National Center for Education Statistics Institute of Education Sciences U.S. Department of Education 1990 K Street NW Washington, DC 20006-5651 June 2008 Th e NCES World Wide Web Home Page address is http://nces.ed.gov. Th e NCES World Wide Web Electronic Catalog is http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch. Suggested Citation Planty, M., Hussar, W., Snyder, T., Provasnik, S., Kena, G., Dinkes, R., KewalRamani, A., and Kemp, J. (2008). Th e Condition of Education 2008 (NCES 2008-031). National Center for Education Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC. For ordering information on this report, write to U.S. Department of Education ED Pubs P.O. Box 1398 Jessup, MD 20794-1398 or call toll free 1-877-4ED-PUBS or order online at http://www.edpubs.org. Content Contact Michael Planty (202) 502-7312 [email protected] Commissioner’s Statement Commissioner’s Statement INTRODUCTION education. For example, the overall enrollment rate increased from 48 to 65 To ensure reliable, accurate, and timely data, percent for those ages 18–19, from 32 which are necessary to monitor the progress of to 48 percent for those ages 20–21, and U.S. education, Congress has mandated that from 15 to 27 percent for those ages the National Center for Education Statistics 22–24 (indicator 1). (NCES) produce an annual report, The Condi- tion of Education. This year’s report presents A greater percentage of children who were indicators of important developments and about 4 years old in 2005–06 were in a trends in U.S. education. These indicators focus center-based setting as their primary type of on participation and persistence in education, early education and care (57 percent) than in student performance and other measures of other arrangements such as regular parental achievement, the environment for learning, and care (20 percent), home-based relative care resources for education. (13 percent), home-based nonrelative care (8 percent), or multiple arrangements (2 This statement summarizes the main fi ndings percent). A smaller percentage of Hispanic of the 43 indicators that appear in the fi ve children (49 percent) were in a center- following sections. Each indicator discussed is based setting as their primary type of referenced by its number (e.g., indicator 1) in early education and care than their White, the volume. Black, Asian, or American Indian/Alaska Native peers (60 to 62 percent each). The PARTICIPATION IN EDUCATION percentage of children in a center-based As the U.S. population increases in size, so setting increased as parents’ highest level of does enrollment at all levels of education. At education increased (indicator 2). the elementary and secondary levels, growth In 2008, public elementary and secondary is due largely to the increase in the size of the school enrollment in the United States is school-age population. At the postsecondary expected to approach about 49.8 million level, both population growth and increasing students: 34.9 million in prekindergarten enrollment rates help account for rising enroll- through 8th grade and 14.9 million in ments in undergraduate, graduate, and fi rst- grades 9 through 12. Total public element- professional programs. The cohorts of learners ary and secondary school enrollment is have become more diverse, with students who projected to set new enrollment records are members of racial/ethnic minorities or who each year from 2008 through 2017, at speak a language other than English at home which time it is expected to reach an making up an increasing proportion of the estimated high of 54.1 million students. school-age population over time. According to projections, the South is Between 1970 and 2006, children ages expected to experience the largest increase 3–4 (typically preschool ages) experienced in enrollment of all regions in the country the largest increase in enrollment rates, (indicator 3). from 20 to 56 percent, of any age group. From 1989 to 2001, private school enroll- Notable growth was also seen in the enrollment in kindergarten through grade 12 ment rates for those ages 18–24, the period increased from 4.8 to 5.3 million students; when young adults are typically enrolled by 2005, enrollment had declined to in or transitioning into postsecondary The Condition of Education 2008 | Page iii Commissioner’s Statement Commissioner’s Statement Continued 5.1 million students. Overall, while the a decrease since 1979, although this per- number of students enrolled in private centage has remained relatively stable since schools was higher in 2005 than in 1989, 1995. A larger percentage of school-age the percentage of all students attending children were living in poor households private schools declined from 11 to 9 in 2006 than in 1979 (17 vs. 15 percent), percent. Along with the changing level of but both percentages were lower than the private school enrollment, the distribution high of 21 percent in 1995 (indicator 6). of students across different types of private schools changed during this period. Roman Between 1979 and 2006, the number of Catholic schools continued to have the school-age children (ages 5–17) who largest percentage of total private school spoke a language other than English at enrollment, but the distribution of students home increased from 3.8 to 10.8 million, shifted from Roman Catholic to other or from 9 to 20 percent of the population religious and nonsectarian private schools in this age range. Among these children, at both the elementary and secondary the percentage who spoke English with levels (indicator 4). diffi culty increased from 3 to 6 percent between 1979 and 2000, but this percent- The percentage of racial/ethnic minority age did not change measurably between students enrolled in the nation’s public 2000 and 2006 (remained between 5 and schools increased from 22 percent in 1972 6 percent). In 2006, about 72 percent of to 31 percent in 1986 to 43 percent in the school-age children who spoke a 2006. This increase in minority enrollment language other than English at home largely refl ects the growth in the percentage spoke Spanish (indicator 7). of students who were Hispanic. In 2006, Hispanic students represented 20 percent Since the enactment of the Individuals of public school enrollment, up from 6 with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in percent in 1972 and 11 percent in 1986. the mid-1970s, the number and percentage The distribution of minority students in of children and youth ages 3–21 receiving public schools differed across regions of special education services increased nearly the country, with minority public school every year until 2004–05. In 1976–77, enrollment (55 percent) exceeding White some 3.7 million children and youth in enrollment (45 percent) in the West in this age group were served under IDEA (5 2006 (indicator 5). percent), and by 2006–07, some 6.7 million received services (about 9 percent). The percentage of school-age children The percentage receiving special education (ages 5–17) whose parents had completed services for a specifi c learning disability a bachelor’s degree or higher increased was 3 percentage points higher in 2006–07 from 19 to 35 percent between 1979 and than in 1976–77 (5 vs. 2 percent). In 2006. During this period, the percentage comparison, the prevalence of speech or of parents with a bachelor’s degree or language impairments remained fairly higher increased for White children (from constant (indicator 8). 22 to 44 percent), Black children (from 5 to 21 percent), and Hispanic children Total undergraduate enrollment in degree- (from 7 to 15 percent). In 2006, some 67 granting postsecondary institutions has percent of school-age children were living generally increased since 1970 and is in two-parent households, representing projected to reach 15.6 million students in Page iv | The Condition of Education 2008 Commissioner’s Statement Commissioner’s Statement Continued 2008.

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