Foreword

The 2016 edition of the Digest of Education Statistics is the 52nd in a series of publications initiated in 1962. The Digest has been issued annually except for combined editions for the years 1977–78, 1983–84, and 1985–86. Its primary purpose is to provide a compilation of statistical information covering the broad field of American education from prekindergarten through graduate school. The Digest includes a selection of data from many sources, both government and private, and draws especially on the results of surveys and activities carried out by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). To qualify for inclusion in the Digest, material must be nationwide in scope and of current interest and value. The publication contains information on a variety of subjects in the field of education statistics, including the number of schools and colleges, teachers, enrollments, and graduates, in addition to data on educational attainment, finances, federal funds for education, libraries, and international comparisons. Supplemental information on population trends, attitudes on education, education characteristics of the labor force, government finances, and economic trends provides background for evaluating education data. Although the Digest contains important information on federal education funding, more detailed information on federal activities is available from federal education program offices.

The Digest contains seven chapters: All Levels of Education, Elementary and Secondary Education, Postsecondary Education, Federal Funds for Education and Related Activities, Outcomes of Education, International Comparisons of Education, and Libraries and Use of Technology. Each chapter is divided into a number of topical subsections. Preceding the seven chapters is an Introduction that provides a brief overview of current trends in American education, which supplements the tabular materials in chapters 1 through 7. The Digest concludes with three appendixes. The first appendix, Guide to Sources, provides a brief synopsis of the surveys used to generate the Digest tables; the second, Definitions, is included to help readers understand terms used in the Digest; and the third, Index of Table Numbers, allows readers to quickly locate tables on specific topics.

The Digest can be accessed from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest. Tables from each Digest edition since 1995 can be viewed by selecting the edition year from a drop-down menu. All tables that appear in the print version of the Digest are also included in the online version. In addition, the online version of recent editions includes a number of supplemental "web-only" tables. (Web-only tables are identified as such in the print version's comprehensive List of Reference Tables.) In the online version, Digest tables are available both in HTML format and as downloadable Excel files. The most current versions of Digest tables are posted to the NCES website on a rolling basis before the entire edition of the report has been completed. The "Most Current Digest Tables" page provides access to the most recent versions of all tables, including any tables already completed for an edition currently in progress.

In addition to providing updated versions of many statistics that have appeared in previous years, this edition incorporates new material on the following topics:

• Percentage of children under age 18 living in poverty, by parents' highest level of educational attainment, race/ethnicity, and selected racial/ethnic subgroups (table 102.62)
• Number and percentage of 25- to 64-year-old persons with disabilities, by highest level of educational attainment and other selected characteristics (web-only table 104.75)
• Number and percentage of homeless students enrolled in public elementary and secondary schools, by various characteristics (tables 204.75a–204.75e), including data by grade (table 204.75a), by school district locale (table 204.75b), by state (tables 204.75c and 204.75d), and for the 120 largest school districts (table 204.75e)
• Private elementary and secondary school enrollment, percentage distribution of private school enrollment, and private enrollment as a percentage of total enrollment in public and private schools, by school orientation and grade (table 205.15)
• Number and percentage of persons completing a teacher preparation program and receiving an initial teaching credential, by state or jurisdiction (web-only table 209.05)
• Percentage of 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-grade public school students with their own or a shared digital device at home, by selected student and school characteristics (table 218.40)
• Percentage distribution of 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-grade public school students, by when student first used a laptop or desktop computer and selected student and school characteristics (table 218.45)
• Percentage distribution of 8th-grade public school students, by number of hours they spend using a laptop or desktop computer for schoolwork on a weekday and selected student and school characteristics (table 218.50)
• Number and percentage distribution of 5- to 17-year-old students, by home internet access, poverty status, and locale (table 218.70)
• Number and percentage distribution of 5- to 17-year-old students, by home internet access, race/ethnicity, and locale (table 218.71)
• Percentage distribution of fall 2010 first-time kindergartners, by two risk factors (low parental education and family poverty) and selected child, family, and school characteristics (table 220.39)
• Fall 2010 first-time kindergartners' mathematics scale scores through spring of third grade, by selected child, family, and school characteristics during the kindergarten year (table 220.41)
• Fall 2010 first-time kindergartners' science scale scores through spring of third grade, by selected child, family, and school characteristics during the kindergarten year (table 220.42)
• Percentage of fall 2010 first-time kindergartners, by frequency with which they reported being victimized by their peers in third grade, type of victimization, and selected child, family, and school characteristics (table 220.55)
• Percentage of fall 2010 first-time kindergartners, by frequency with which the teacher reported that they victimized their peers in third grade, type of victimization, and selected child, family, and school characteristics (table 220.56)
• Fall 2010 first-time kindergartners' scores on various academic, social, and emotional scales in third grade, by frequency of being victimized by their peers, frequency of victimizing their peers, and type of victimization (table 220.57)
• Average National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading scale score and percentage distribution of 4th- and 8th-graders, by computer use and internet access at home and other selected characteristics (table 221.35)
• Average National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) mathematics scale score and percentage distribution of 4th- and 8th-graders, by computer use and internet access at home and other selected characteristics (table 222.45)
• Average National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) science scale score and percentage distribution of 4th- and 8th-graders, by computer use and internet access at home and other selected characteristics (table 223.40)
• Average National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) technology and engineering literacy (TEL) scale score of 8th-graders, their scores on the three TEL content areas, and percentage attaining TEL achievement levels, by selected student and school characteristics (table 224.70)
• Average scale score of 8th-graders on the information and communication technology (ICT) content area of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) technology and engineering literacy (TEL) assessment and percentage distribution of 8th-graders, by computer use and internet access at home and other selected characteristics (table 224.73)
• Average National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) technology and engineering literacy (TEL) scale score and percentage distribution of 8th-graders, by frequency of learning about or discussing various technology- and society-related topics in school (web-only table 224.74a), frequency of having done or of learning about various design- and systems-related activities or topics in school (web-only table 224.74b), frequency of having done various design- and systems-related activities outside of school (web-only table 224.74c), frequency of using a computer or other digital technology to perform various activities for school work (web-only table 224.74d), frequency of using a computer or other digital technology to perform various activities not related to school work (web-only table 224.74e), level of confidence in ability to perform various technology- and engineering-related tasks (web-only table 224.74f), and selected student and school characteristics
• Average ACT scores and percentage of graduates taking the ACT, by state (table 226.60)
• Percentage distribution of students in grades 9-12 and percentage reporting selected types of victimization or risk behaviors, by sex and sexual orientation (table 228.99)
• Among students ages 12-18 who reported being bullied at school during the school year, percentage reporting that bullying had varying degrees of negative effect on various aspects of their life, by aspect of life affected and selected student and school characteristics (table 230.52)
• Among students ages 12-18 who reported being bullied at school during the school year, percentage reporting that bullying was related to specific characteristics, by type of characteristic related to bullying and other selected student and school characteristics (table 230.53)
• Number and percentage distribution of first-time postsecondary students starting at 2- and 4-year institutions during the 2011-12 academic year, by attainment and enrollment status and selected characteristics (table 326.50)
• Labor force status of persons 25 to 64 years old, by disability status, highest level of educational attainment, age, sex, and race/ethnicity (web-only table 501.35)
• Percentage of 16- to 64-year-old undergraduate students who were employed, by attendance status, hours worked per week, and selected characteristics (table 503.40)
• Average literacy and numeracy scale scores and percentage distribution of 25- to 65-year-olds, by proficiency level and selected characteristics (table 507.15)
• Percentage of 25- to 65-year-olds who were not assessed in the problem solving in technology-rich environments domain and average scale score and percentage distribution of those who were assessed, by proficiency level and selected characteristics (table 507.16)
• Average mathematics score and percentage of eighth-graders, by access to the Internet and a computer or tablet at home or some other place outside of school and frequency of computer or tablet use for schoolwork outside of school (table 602.32a), mathematics teachers' reports of student access to computers and frequency of computer use during mathematics lessons (table 602.32b), and country or other education system
• Average science score and percentage of eighth-graders, by access to the Internet and a computer or tablet at home or some other place outside of school and frequency of computer or tablet use for schoolwork outside of school (table 602.33a), science teachers' reports of student access to computers and frequency of computer use during science lessons (table 602.33b), and country or other education system
• Average advanced mathematics and physics scores of high school seniors who had taken advanced courses in these subjects, seniors who had taken such courses as a percentage of their age cohort, and instructional time in such courses, by country (table 602.35)
• Average reading literacy, mathematics literacy, and science literacy scores of 15-year-old students, by computer and internet access at home and country or other education system (table 602.45)
• Percentage distribution of fourth- and eighth-graders, by frequency with which they reported being bullied during the school year and country or other education system (table 602.84)
• Percentage distribution of fourth- and eighth-graders, by extent to which their teachers rated the school as safe and orderly and country or other education system (table 602.85)
• Percentage distribution of fourth- and eighth-graders, by severity of school discipline problems reported by their principal and country or other education system (table 602.86)
• Percentage distribution of 16- to 19-year-olds, by frequency of using computers or the Internet to perform selected activities in everyday life and country or subnational region (table 604.40)
• Percentage of 16- to 19-year-olds who were not assessed in the problem solving in technology-rich environments domain and percentage distribution of those who were assessed, by proficiency level, selected U.S. and international respondent characteristics, and country or subnational region (table 604.50)
• Percentage of children ages 3 to 18 living in households with a computer, by type of computer and selected child and family characteristics (table 702.10)
• Percentage of children ages 3 to 18 who use the Internet from home, by selected child and family characteristics (web-only table 702.15)
• Percentage of children ages 3 to 18 who use the Internet and, among those who use the Internet, percentage using it in various locations, by selected child and family characteristics (table 702.20)
• Percentage of persons age 3 and over who use the Internet anywhere and who use the Internet at selected locations, by selected characteristics (table 702.30)
• Percentage of home internet users age 3 and over and ages 3 to 18, by means of internet access from home and selected characteristics (web-only table 702.35)
• Percentage of persons age 3 and over and ages 3 to 18 with no internet access at home and percentage distribution of those with no home access, by main reason for not having access and selected characteristics (web-only table 702.40)
• Number and percentage of households with computer and Internet access, by state (web-only table 702.60)

The Digest can be accessed from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest.

Thomas D. Snyder
Supervisor
Annual Reports and Information Staff

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