Educational attainment: The highest level of schooling attended and completed. See also High school completion, Bachelor's degree, Master's degree, Doctoral degree, and First-professional degree.

Elementary school: An elementary/secondary school with one or more grades of K-6 that does not have any grade higher than grade 8. For example, schools with grades K-6, 1-3, or 6-8 are classified as elementary.

Elementary/secondary school: Elementary/secondary schools include regular schools (i.e., schools that are part of state and local school systems and private elementary/secondary schools, both religiously affiliated and nonsectarian); alternative schools; vocational education schools; and special education schools. Schools not reported here include subcollegiate departments of postsecondary institutions, residential schools for exceptional children, federal schools for American Indians or Alaska Natives, and federal schools on military posts and other federal installations.

English language learner: Persons for whom English is a second language and who have not yet attained proficiency in the English language. See also Limited-English-Proficient.

Expenditures: Charges incurred, whether paid or unpaid, that are presumed to benefit the current fiscal year. For elementary/secondary schools, these include all charges for current outlays plus capital outlays and interest on school debt. For postsecondary institutions, these include current outlays plus capital outlays. For the government, these include charges net of recoveries and other correcting transactions, other than retirement of debt, investment in securities, extension of credit, or agency transactions. Also, government expenditures include only external transactions, such as the provision of prerequisites or other payments in kind. Aggregates for groups of governments exclude intergovernmental transactions among the governments. See also supplemental note 10. Expenditures types include the following:

• Current expenditures: Expenditures for operating local public schools and school districts, excluding capital outlay and interest on debt. These expenditures include such items as salaries for school personnel, fixed charges, student transportation, books and materials, and energy costs. Expenditures for state administration are excluded.
• Instructional expenditures (elementary/secondary): Current expenditures for activities directly associated with the interaction between teachers and students. These include teacher salaries and benefits, supplies (such as textbooks), and purchased instructional services.
• Expenditures per student: Charges incurred for a particular period of time divided by a student unit of measure, such as enrollment, average daily attendance, or average daily membership. See also supplemental note 10.