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The Beginning Teacher Longitudinal Study (BTLS) is a new study of a cohort of beginning public school teachers initially interviewed as part of the 2007-08 Schools and Staffing Survey. The study will create an unfolding “story” by following this cohort of first-year teachers for a decade.

Visit the Beginning Teacher Longitudinal Study Homepage


The Strengthening Career and Technical Education for the 21st Century Act mandates that "as a regular part of its assessments, the National Center for Education Statistics shall collect and report information on career and technical education for a nationally representative sample of students." To meet this requirement, NCES uses the Career and Technical Education (CTE) Statistics system. CTE Statistics relies on existing NCES surveys to provide data on CTE from students, faculty, and schools at the secondary and (subbaccalaureate) postsecondary levels, as well as on adults’ work-related education, training, and skills.

Visit the Career/Technical Education Statistics Homepage


CCD is a comprehensive, annual, national statistical database of information concerning all approximately 100,000 public elementary and secondary schools and approximately 18,000 public school districts (including supervisory unions and regional education service agencies), which contains data that are designed to be comparable across all states. The CCD consists of five surveys completed annually by state education departments from their administrative records. Information included are: a general description of schools and school districts, including name, address, and phone number; data on students and staff, including demographics; and fiscal data, including revenues and current expenditures.

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NCES carries out a variety of activities to collect data on crime, violence and safety in U.S. elementary and secondary schools. This is achieved through the Crime and Safety Surveys program which oversees student surveys, school principal surveys and other surveys; such as the School Survey on Crime and Safety, the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization Survey and a facilities supplement to the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002. Topics in these surveys include: gangs, bullying, student victimization, drug availability, fear and avoidance behaviors, disciplinary actions, prevention activities, school safety programs and policies, use of school security, and school facilities measures.

Visit the Crime and Safety Surveys Homepage


The CPS is a monthly survey designed to collect data on labor force participation of the civilian noninstitutional population. (It excludes military personnel and inmates of institutions.) In October of each year, questions on school enrollment by grade and other school characteristics are asked about each member of the household.

Visit the Current Population Survey, October Homepage


The Early Childhood Longitudinal Study (ECLS) program includes four longitudinal studies that examine child development, school readiness, and early school experiences from birth through elementary school. The program provides data to analyze the relationships among a wide range of family, school, community, and individual factors with children's development, early learning, and performance in school. The birth cohort of the ECLS-B is a sample of children born in 2001 followed from birth through kindergarten entry. The kindergarten class of 1998-99 cohort is a sample of children followed from kindergarten through the eighth grade. The kindergarten class of 2010-11 cohort is a sample of children followed from kindergarten through the fifth grade. The newest ECLS program study, the ECLS-K:2024, will follow the kindergarten class of 2023-24 through the fifth grade.

Visit the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study Homepage


The ED School Climate Surveys (EDSCLS) are a suite of survey instruments for schools, districts, and states by the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Through the EDSCLS, schools nationwide will have access to survey instruments and a survey platform that will allow for the collection and reporting of school climate data across stakeholders at the local level. The surveys can be used to produce school-, district-, and state-level scores on various indicators of school climate from the perspectives of students, teachers, noninstructional school staff and principals, and parents and guardians. The EDSCLS is conducting a National Benchmark Study collecting data from a nationally representative sample of schools across the United States. The National Benchmark Study will create a national comparison point for users of the ED School Climate Surveys.

Visit the EDSCLS National Benchmark Homepage


The Education Demographic and Geographic Estimates (EDGE) program develops information resources to identify and understand the social and spatial context of education. It uses data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey to create custom indicators of social, economic, and housing conditions for school-age children and their parents. It also uses spatial data collected by NCES, the Census Bureau, and other sources to create geographic locale indicators, school point locations, school district boundaries, and other types of educational geography to support research and analysis.

Visit the Education Demographic and Geographic Estimates Homepage


The EDFIN is designed to conduct research to improve the collection and reporting of education finance information. EDFIN projects explore definitional, measurement, collection, reporting, and analysis issues related to education finance for elementary/secondary or postsecondary public or private education.

Visit the Education Finance Statistics Center Homepage


The Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002) is a longitudinal survey that will monitor the transitions of a national sample of young people as they progress from tenth grade to, eventually, the world of work. ELS:2002 will obtain information not just from students and their school records, but also from students' parents, their teachers, their librarians and the administrators of their schools.

Visit the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 Homepage


The FRSS was established in 1975 to collect issue-oriented data quickly and with minimum response burden. FRSS was designed to meet the data needs of Department of Education analysts, planners, and decision makers when information could not be collected quickly through traditional NCES surveys. The data collected through FRSS are representative at the national level, drawing from a universe that is appropriate for each study.

Visit the Fast Response Survey System Homepage


The HS&B describes the activities of seniors and sophomores as they progressed through high school, postsecondary education, and into the workplace. The data span 1980 through 1992 and include parent, teacher, high school transcripts, student financial aid records, and postsecondary transcripts in addition to student questionnaires and interviews.

Visit the High School and Beyond Homepage


In the fall of 2009, NCES launched the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009, which follows a cohort of more than 25,000 9th graders in the base year through their high school, postsecondary, and early career experiences, focusing on college decision-making and on math learning based on a new algebra assessment. Data are collected from students, administrators, math and science teachers, school counselors (new!), parents, and administrative records.

Visit the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 Homepage


High school transcript studies have been conducted by NCES as part of the Longitudinal Studies Program and the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) High School Transcript (HSTS) Studies program since 1982. Each transcript study is associated with a major NCES data collection.

Visit the High School Transcript Studies Homepage


MGLS:2017 is the first study to follow a nationally-representative sample of students as they enter and move through the middle grades. Repeated measures of key constructs will provide a rich descriptive picture of the academic progress, experiences and lives of students during these critical years and will allow researchers to examine associations between contextual factors and student outcomes. There is a special focus on socioemotional and executive function measures, as well as successful transition to high school and later education and career outcomes.

Visit the Middle Grades Longitudinal Study of 2017–18 Homepage


The NELS:88, which began with an 8th grade cohort in 1988, provides trend data about critical transitions experienced by young people as they develop, attend school, and embark on their careers. Data were collected from students and their parents, teachers, and high school principals and from existing school records such as high school transcripts. Cognitive tests (math, science, reading, and history) were administered during the base year (1988), first follow up (1990), and second follow up (1992). Third follow up data were collected in 1994. All dropouts, who could be located, were retained in the study. A fourth follow-up was completed in 2000, including a postsecondary student transcript data collection.

Visit the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988 Homepage


The National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES) is a household-based data collection system designed to address a wide range of education related issues. The NHES collects timely data about the educational activities of the U.S. population. NHES surveys have been conducted every two to four years since 1991. Recent NHES data collections consist of two surveys: The Early Childhood Program Participation survey and the Parent and Family Involvement in Education survey. Most NHES surveys have been conducted on a repeating basis to measure the same phenomena at different points in time. The NHES has included surveys on adult education, parent and family involvement in education, before- and after-school programs and activities, civic involvement, early childhood program participation, household library use, school readiness, and school safety and discipline.

Visit the National Household Education Survey Homepage


The NLS-72 describes the transition of young adults from high school through postsecondary education and the workplace. The data span 1972 through 1986 and include postsecondary transcripts.

Visit the National Longitudinal Study of the H.S. Class of 1972 Homepage


The National Teacher and Principal Survey (NTPS) collects extensive data on American public elementary and secondary schools. Teachers, principals and schools are components of the NTPS survey system. NTPS provides data on characteristics and qualifications of teachers and principals, teacher hiring practices, professional development, class size and other conditions in schools. NTPS is designed to allow the analysis of trend data. NTPS replaces the Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) which was last conducted in the 2011-12 school year.

Visit the National Teacher and Principal Survey Homepage


The purposes of Private School Survey (PSS) data collection activities are: to build an accurate and complete list of private schools to serve as a sampling frame for NCES sample surveys of private schools; and to report data on the total number of private schools, teachers, and students in the survey universe. The PSS has been conducted every 2 years with the first collection taking place during the 1989-90 school year.

Visit the Private School Survey Homepage


This site provides links to data and information on current and changing conditions in education in rural America. The site provides access to recent data collected by NCES including: enrollments; National Assessment of Educational Progress scores; coursetaking, dropouts and transition to college; availability of advanced course offerings and technology, teacher characteristics, class size, technology, discipline and facilities; and support for learning, including parents’ satisfaction and involvement, community support, and financial support. The site also has links to other information resources, including relevant U.S. Department of Education programs and research and promising practices related to rural education.

Visit the Rural Education in America Homepage


The School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS) collects information on crime and safety from U.S. public school principals. SSOCS was administered in the spring of 2000 and again in the spring of 2004. SSOCS is a nationally representative, cross-sectional survey of 3,000 public elementary and secondary schools. Data are collected on such topics as frequency and types of crimes at school, frequency and types of disciplinary actions at school, perceptions of other disciplinary problems, and descriptions of school policies and programs concerning crime and safety.

Visit the School Survey on Crime and Safety Homepage


The Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) collects extensive data on American public and private elementary and secondary schools. Teachers, principals, schools, school districts and library media centers are components of the SASS survey system. SASS provides data on characteristics and qualifications of teachers and principals, teacher hiring practices, professional development, class size and other conditions in schools. SASS data are designed to allow comparisons of public and private schools and staff and permit the analysis of trend data. In addition, SASS data are state-representative for the public sector and affiliation-representative for the private sector. Public schools are also linked to their respective districts. Public charter schools, their teachers and principals were included in the 1999-2000 administration of the SASS. SASS was administered in the 2003-04 school year and again in the 2007-08 school year.

Visit the Schools and Staffing Survey Homepage


The State Education Practices website draws primarily on data collected by organizations other than NCES. It serves as a general resource on major developments in state-level education policies. Initially based on the publication 'Overview and Inventory of State Education Practices: 1990 to 2000,' this site is updated periodically to incorporate new data. Currently, this site generally reflects information collected through 2020.

Visit the State Education Practices Homepage


The U.S. Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences (IES) awarded grants to 41 states and the District of Columbia to aid them in the design and implementation of statewide longitudinal data systems. These systems are intended to enhance the ability of states to efficiently and accurately manage, analyze, and use education data, including individual student records. The data systems developed with funds from these grants should help states, districts, schools, and teachers make data-driven decisions to improve student learning, as well as facilitate research to increase student achievement and close achievement gaps.

Visit the Statewide Longitudinal Data Systems Grant Program Homepage


This site provides links to data and information on current and changing conditions in education in urban America. The site provides access to recent data collected by NCES including: enrollments; National Assessment of Educational Progress scores; dropout and transition to college rates; teacher characteristics and student/teacher ratios; school discipline and school crime; school facilities and access to technology; and support for learning, including community support, and financial support. The site also has links to other information resources, including relevant U.S. Department of Education programs and research and promising practices related to urban education.

Visit the Urban Education in America Homepage