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Over the long-term, there has been improvement in the scores of 9- and 13-year-olds on national reading and mathematics assessments since the early 1970s, but the scores of 17-year-olds have remained flat. In the short-term, progress on national assessments in reading and mathematics has been made among 4th- and 8th-graders since the early 1990s, but reading scores for 12th-graders have declined. In other subject areas, such as writing, scores for 8th- and 12th-graders have improved. However, significant achievement gaps among racial/ethnic groups remain. International assessments show that U.S. students are in the top third of 4th-graders in reading, but below the international averages in science and mathematics at age 15. Other measures of progress show an increase in the high school graduation rate since 2000 and a decline in the status dropout rate. The U.S. education system also shows signs of continued growth for years to come. In elementary and secondary education, enrollments have followed population shifts and are projected to increase each year through 2017 to an all-time high of 54 million, with the South expected to experience the largest increase in enrollments. Rates of enrollment in degree-granting postsecondary education at both the undergraduate and graduate levels have increased and are projected to continue to do so throughout the next 10 years. The number of school-age children who spoke a language other than English at home more than doubled between 1979 and 2006, and the number and percentage of children receiving special education services in our elementary and secondary schools have increased nearly every year up until 2004-05. NCES produces an array of reports each year that present findings about the U.S. education system. The Condition of Education 2008 is the culmination of a yearlong project. It includes data that were available by early April 2008. In the coming months, other reports and surveys informing the nation about education will be released. Along with the indicators in this volume, NCES intends these surveys and reports to help inform policymakers and the American public about trends and conditions in U.S. education.
Mark Schneider |
