THE CONDITION OF EDUCATION 2001, released yesterday, presents a
compilation of statistical information around 59 "indicators"
that together provide a snapshot of the health of American
education. Information is organized in 6 areas:
* enrollment trends & student characteristics at all levels
of education
* student achievement & the enduring effects of education
* student effort & rates of progress through the education
system among different population groups
* the quality of elementary & secondary education in terms
of courses taken, teacher characteristics, & other
factors
* the context of postsecondary education
* societal support for learning, including parent &
community support for learning, & public & private
financial support of education at all levels.
The report is produced annually by the Department's National
Center for Education Statistics (NCES). A special feature in
this year's report is an essay on the access, persistence, &
success of first-generation students in postsecondary
education.
The Department's press release is below. The full report &
the Secretary's statement are at
http://www.ed.gov/Speeches/05-2001/010531.html
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2001072
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New Report Gives Out Pluses & Minuses
To American Education (May 30, 2001)
=====================================
Enrollments are continuing to grow at all levels of education, &
coursetaking in advanced science & mathematics is increasing, yet
gaps persist in educational performance & participation, according
to "The Condition of Education 2001," released today by the U.S.
Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics
(NCES).
While U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige noted some positive
trends documented in the report, he cautioned that, "The Condition
of Education tells us concretely that we are far from where we need
to be in terms of student performance. We are failing to close the
persistent achievement & attainment gaps -- & we lag behind other
developed nations in mathematics & science achievement."
The 59 indicators contained in the report convey the most up-to-date
information about enrollment, outcomes, context & support for
education. The annual report also presents U.S. standings on
international comparisons. In addition to addressing the scope &
quality of American education overall, this year's focus is on
first-generation college students & factors that increase their
likelihood of entering college & educational success.
The report points to many shortcomings in U.S. education.
Comparisons of student performance both over time & internationally
raise concerns about how well the American educational system is
keeping up with systems of other economically developed countries,
especially at the secondary level. In addition, disturbing gaps
remain in academic performance & educational participation among
different racial/ethnic & socioeconomic groups.
These differences start early & persist. From the beginning of
kindergarten to the end of first grade, most children show marked
improvement in reading & mathematics, but initial gaps in
performance -- associated with their mother's education -- remain.
As children progress through first grade, students from better-
educated families continue to score higher & acquire more advanced
skills & knowledge -- such as competence in multiplication &
division & recognizing & understanding words in context -- compared
with other students.
The report provides an important message for students, parents &
schools -- that rigorous academic coursework in high school makes
it much more likely that students whose parents never attended
college will enroll & continue their education. For instance:
* Among high school graduates whose parents had no postsecondary
education, the enrollment rate of those who took advanced
mathematics (64 percent) greatly exceeded the enrollment rates
of their peers who did not take advanced mathematics (ranging
from 4 to 34 percent).
* Rigorous academic preparation in high school narrows the gap
in postsecondary persistence (staying in school) between the
first-generation students (81 percent) & their peers with a
parent who has a bachelor's degree (89 percent).
* First-generation students who had not taken a rigorous
academic curriculum in high school were less likely to
continue towards a bachelor's degree than their counterparts
with a parent who has a bachelor's degree (55 versus 69
percent).
"Together, these indicators present a complex picture of education
in our nation," said Gary Phillips, acting commissioner of
education statistics. "Some show signs of national progress;
others show no change. Encouraging trends show almost two-thirds
of recent high school graduates enrolling in college following high
school & a doubling of advanced coursetaking in English & foreign
language study between 1982 to 1998. On the other hand,
discouraging findings include the continuing gaps among racial
groups & few recent improvements in performance."
Other findings include:
* While the National Assessment of Educational Progress shows
that reading performance has improved since 1971 for 9- &
13-year-olds, scores have not improved for 17-year-olds.
Although the long-term trend data show a decrease in the
performance gap between whites & blacks, most of this
reduction occurred between 1971 & 1988.
* In mathematics, the trends in student performance show higher
scores in 1999 than 1971 for all three age groups, but no
improvements between 1994 to 1999 & some widening of the
black-white achievement gap. The gap between whites &
Hispanics has narrowed for 13-and 17-year-olds since 1973.
* Trends in science performance are characterized by declines in
the 1970s, increases during the 1980s & early 1990s, & mostly
unchanged performance since then. The black-white achievement
gap remains unchanged.
* International assessments show how well U.S. students perform
relative to their peers in other countries. In 1999, U.S.
eighth-graders exceeded the international average among 38
nations in mathematics & science on the Third International
Mathematics & Science Study -- Repeat (TIMSS-R), but were
outperformed by students in 14 industrialized nations.
* Not only do more high school graduates now enroll in college --
but more of them do so immediately after high school.
Between 1972 & 1999, the percentage that enrolled in college
in the fall after high school rose from 49 percent to 63
percent. Undergraduate enrollment is projected to continue to
climb during this decade. Over the next decade, growth in
undergraduate enrollments is expected to be greater for full-
time students & at four-year institutions. Women's enrollment
is expected to continue increasing faster than that of men's.
NCES prepares "The Condition of Education" in response to a
congressional mandate to document current conditions & recent
trends in American education.
The full text of the report is available on-line at
http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2001072.
A free copy of the report can be ordered by calling toll-
free 1-877-4ED-PUBS (1-877-433-7827) OR TTY/TDD
(1-877-576-7734); via e-mail at [EMAIL PROTECTED]; or via
the Internet at http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html.
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Kirk Winters, Peter Kickbush, Melinda Kitchell Malico
U.S. Department of Education
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