Search Results: (1-15 of 166 records)
| Pub Number | Title |  Date |
|---|---|---|
| NCES 2009030 | 1.5 Million Homeschooled Students in the United States in 2007
This Issue Brief provides estimates of the number and percentage of homeschooled students in the United States in 2007 and compares these estimates to those from 1999 and 2003. In addition, parents’ reasons for homeschooling their children in 2007 are described and compared to 2003. Estimates of homeschooling in 2007 are based on data from the Parent and Family Involvement in Education Survey (PFI) of the 2007 National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES). |
12/23/2008 |
| NCES 2009036REV | Mathematics Achievement of Language-Minority Students During the Elementary Years
This Issue Brief uses data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K) to examine the scores of public-school language-minority students on a mathematics assessment in 1st grade, as well as the gain in their scores between 1st and 5th grades. Scores are reported by three background characteristics--student’s race/ethnicity, poverty status, and mother’s education--that have been found to be related to achievement. The findings indicate that language-minority students (English Proficient students and English Language Learners) scored lower on a 1st-grade mathematics assessment than did students whose primary home language was English. Between 1st and 5th grades, there was no measurable difference in gain scores on the mathematics assessment among the three language groups. However, gain score differences within and between the language groups were found by student background characteristics. For example, Asian language-minority students made greater gains than their Hispanic peers. |
12/16/2008 |
| NCES 2009033 | Expectations and Reports of Homework for Public School Students in the First, Third, and Fifth Grades
This brief uses data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K) to examine (1) the amount of time that students’ public school teachers expected them to spend on reading/language arts and mathematics homework in first, third, and fifth grades; and (2) reports from parents of public school children of how often their children did homework at home in the first, third, and fifth grades. Teachers' expectations are reported by the percentage of minority students in the student's school and parents' reports are reported by the child's race/ethnicity. The findings indicate that the amount of reading and mathematics homework that students' teachers expected them to complete on a typical evening generally increased from first grade to fifth grade. In both subjects and in all grades, differences were found by the minority enrollment of the school. Children in schools with higher percentages of minority students had teachers who expected more homework on a typical evening, whereas generally children in lower minority schools had teachers who expected less homework. In addition, in all three grades, larger percentages of Black, Asian, and Hispanic children than White children had parents who reported that their child did homework five or more times a week. |
12/2/2008 |
| NCES 2008001 | Postsecondary Career/Technical Education: Changes in the Number of Offering Institutions and Awarded Credentials from 1997 to 2006
This issue brief examines trends from 1997 to 2006 in the number of sub-baccalaureate postsecondary institutions that offer programs in career/technical education (CTE), and the number of sub-baccalaureate CTE credentials awarded by postsecondary institutions. Trends were examined by institutional sector, focusing on the three sectors most commonly offering CTE: Public two -year institutions, for-profit less-than-two -year institutions, and for-profit two-year institutions. In 2006, these sectors collectively accounted for 87 percent of the less-than-four-year institutions that offered CTE and awarded 94 percent of all sub-baccalaureate CTE credentials. Overall, the number of less-than-four-year institutions offering CTE increased 3 percent from 1997 to 2006, and the number of sub-baccalaureate CTE credentials awarded increased 24 percent. Over this time period, there was a shift in both CTE-offering institutions and CTE credentials, from public two-year institutions to for-profit two-year and less-than-two-year institutions. Although the number of credentials awarded grew at a faster rate among for-profit institutions than among public two-year institutions, the latter still awarded most sub-baccalaureate CTE credentials in 2006 (58 percent) while for-profit two-year and less-than-two-year institutions combined awarded 35 percent. |
9/23/2008 |
| NCES 2008077 | Attrition of Public School Mathematics and Science Teachers
Using data from the Teacher Follow-up Survey (TFS), this Issue Brief reports on trends in the attrition of public school mathematics and science teachers over a 16-year period and examines the reasons given by mathematics and science teachers for leaving teaching employment. Findings from the analysis indicate that the percentage of public school mathematics and science teachers who left teaching employment did not change measurably between 1988–89 and 2004–05. However, the percentage of other public school teachers who left teaching employment did increase over the same period. Differences were found between mathematics and science leavers and other leavers. For example, of those teachers with a regular or standard certification, a smaller percentage of mathematics and science teachers than other teachers left teaching employment. In addition, when asked to rate various reasons for leaving the teaching profession, greater percentages of mathematics and science leavers than other leavers rated better salary or benefits as very important or extremely important. |
5/19/2008 |
| NCES 2008041 | Recent Participation in Formal Learning Among Working-Age Adults with Different Levels of Education
This issue brief uses data from the 2001 and 2005 adult education surveys of the National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES) to examine the participation of adults in formal learning activities during the 12 months preceding the survey, focusing on the participation of adults who at the end of the survey had the lowest levels of education (no high school diploma, or a GED). These adults with low levels of education were found to have participated at relatively high rates in adult basic education, ESL, and GED classes. However, for the most common types of formal learning activities—work-related courses and personal interest courses—adults with low levels of education participated at lower rates and for shorter periods of time than did adults with higher levels of education. Among the adults who did participate in these activities, those with lower levels of education at the end of the survey were less likely than those with higher levels of education to pay at least some course expenses themselves. |
1/29/2008 |
| NCES 2007010 | Public School Practices for Violence Prevention
and Reduction: 2003–04
This Issue Brief (1) examines principals’ reports of the prevalence of formal practices in public schools designed to prevent or reduce school violence and (2) describes the distribution of these practices by selected school characteristics. This analysis is based on school-level data reported by principals participating in the school year 2003–04 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS) administered by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Findings from the analysis indicate that schools implemented a variety of school violence prevention and reduction practices and that some practices were more commonly used than others. For example, 59 percent of schools formally obtained parental input on policies related to school crime and 50 percent provided parental training to deal with students’ problem behaviors. In addition, practices differed by school level and other selected school characteristics. For example, high schools were more likely than primary schools to implement safety and security procedures, while primary schools were more likely than high schools to promote training for parents to deal with students’ problem behavior. |
9/19/2007 |
| NCES 2007005 | Demographic and School Characteristics of
Students Receiving Special Education in the
Elementary Grades
This Issue Brief provides a detailed description of the proportion of elementary school students receiving special education in kindergarten, first grade, third grade, and fifth grade; the primary disabilities of these students; and the variation in these measures across a range of demographic and school characteristics. Data for this analysis are drawn from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K). Findings from the analysis indicate that for the cohort of students beginning kindergarten in 1998, specific learning disabilities and speech or language impairments were the most prevalent primary disabilities over the grades studied. The percentage of the student cohort receiving special education grew from 4.1 percent in kindergarten to 11.9 percent of students in fifth grade. The results also indicate that higher percentages of boys than girls and of poor students than nonpoor students received special education. |
7/26/2007 |
| NCES 2007008 | Description and Employment Criteria of Instructional Paraprofessionals
This Issue Brief (1) offers a descriptive portrait of the distribution of instructional paraprofessionals in all public elementary and secondary schools by instructional responsibility and selected school characteristics and (2) examines the educational attainment criteria used by school districts in hiring these paraprofessionals. Data for this analysis were drawn from the 2003–04 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS). The findings from this analysis indicate that 91 percent of public elementary and secondary schools in the United States had at least one instructional paraprofessional on staff in 2003–04. A greater percentage of traditional public schools than charter schools had instructional paraprofessionals and a greater percentage of elementary schools than secondary schools report having instructional paraprofessionals. Overall, 93 percent of schools were in districts that required paraprofessionals to have a high school diploma or the equivalent. The results also indicate that a greater percentage of Title I schools than non-Title I schools were in districts that required instructional paraprofessionals to have a high school diploma or the equivalent. |
6/26/2007 |
| NCES 2007018 | Course Credit Accrual and Dropping
Out of High School
In this Issue Brief, differences in the average number of course credits earned between high school graduates and dropouts, both within and accumulated across academic years, are examined in order to describe enrollment and completion behavior of high school graduates and dropouts. Differences in course credit accrual by selected subjects (English, mathematics, and science) are also reported. Data for this study are drawn from high school transcripts collected in 2005 as part of the first follow-up to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002). These high school transcripts provide enrollment histories, graduation dates, and coursetaking patterns. The findings from the analysis indicate that high school dropouts earn fewer credits than do on-time graduates within each academic year, and the gap in course credits accrued between dropouts and on-time graduates increased across academic years. Differences were also observed in the course credit accrual of dropouts and on-time graduates by selected subjects (e.g., mathematics, science, and English). In addition, the gap in the cumulative number of course credits accrued between on-time graduates and dropouts grew more pronounced over time, and the disparity in cumulative course credits was most evident in the final academic year in which they earned any course credits. |
4/24/2007 |
| NCES 2007043 | Timing and Duration of Student Participation in Special Education in the Primary Grades
This Issue Brief reports the timing of entry into special education and the number of grades in which students receive special education across the primary grades. About 12 percent of students receive special education in at least one of the grades: kindergarten, first, and third grade, including 16 percent of boys, 8 percent of girls, 18 percent of poor children, and 10 percent of nonpoor children. One in three students who receive special education in early grades, first receive special education in kindergarten. Half of those who begin special education in kindergarten are no longer receiving special education by third grade. In addition to students’ gender and poverty status, results are presented separately for other student and school characteristics, including race/ethnicity and school control, urbanicity, region, and poverty concentration. Data for this brief come from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Studies, Kindergarten Class of 1998-99 (ECLS-K). |
3/21/2007 |
| NCES 2007019 | Economic Outcomes of High School Completers and Noncompleters 8 Years Later
This Issue Brief uses data from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88) to compare the economic outcomes of high school completers at three different points in time with the outcomes of individuals who did not complete high school. Differences by sex and the type of credential earned are also examined. The findings suggest that individuals who completed high school within 6 years generally had more favorable economic outcomes than their counterparts who completed high school later or not at all. However, differences in economic outcomes were most prominent between males and females even after controlling for the timing and type of high school credential earned. |
10/12/2006 |
| NCES 2006086 | School and Parent Interaction by Household Language and Poverty Status: 2002-03
Language minority parents may face a number of challenges when trying to communicate or become involved with their child’s school. This Issue Brief describes school-to-home communication practices and opportunities for parent involvement at school as reported by parents of U.S. school-age students from primarily English- and primarily Spanish-speaking households during the 2002–03 school year. Data are drawn from the Parent and Family Involvement in Education Survey of the 2003 National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES), which included English and Spanish language surveys of parents’ perceptions of school communication practices and opportunities for parent involvement. Among the findings: A greater percentage of students in English-speaking households than in Spanish-speaking households had parents who reported receiving personal notes or e-mails about the student; receiving newsletters, memos, or notices addressed to all parents; opportunities to attend general meetings; opportunities to attend school events; and chances to volunteer. Differences were still apparent after taking poverty status into account. |
9/27/2006 |
| NCES 2006081 | Certification and Private School Teachers' Transfers to Public Schools
This Issue Brief uses data from the Teacher Follow-Up Survey (TFS) to report teachers' transitions between public and private schools for teachers with and without certifications in the subjects they teach. In this exploratory study of the association between state certification and private school teachers’ movement to other private schools and public schools between 1987-88 and 2000-01, private school teachers who either obtained a state certification in their main assignment between one year and the next or who switched main assignments into one in which they were state-certified were more likely to change schools than were those without a regular state certification in the subject area of their main assignment. In three out of four time periods, higher percentages of movers who held state certification in year two of the time period only switched to public schools than did those without regular state certifications in their main assignment in either year of the time period. In all four time periods for which data were collected, higher percentages of movers with regular state certifications in both years of the time period moved to public schools than did their peers without the certification. However, regardless of certification status, 11 percent or fewer of private school teachers changed schools during any 2-year period. |
9/7/2006 |
| NCES 2006004 | Qualifications of Public Secondary School
History Teachers, 1999–2000
Previous studies of the qualifications of elementary and secondary school teachers have focused on whether teachers have educational backgrounds (a postsecondary major/minor or equivalent) and state certification that match the subjects they teach. If not, they are commonly considered “out-of-field.” This Issue Brief reports the combination of certifications and majors and minors to which secondary-level history students are exposed and how these qualifications vary across schools with differing levels of student poverty. Data from the NCES 1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) teacher and school questionnaires indicate that students in the lowest poverty schools were the least likely to have a teacher with both an out-of-field certification and an out-of-field major or minor. |
8/3/2006 |
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