Table 208.20.

Public and private elementary and secondary teachers, enrollment, pupil/teacher ratios, and new teacher hires: Selected years, fall 1955 through fall 2026

Year	Teachers (in thousands)				Enrollment (in thousands)				Pupil/teacher ratio				Number of new teacher hires (in thousands)1
	Total	Public	Private		Total	Public	Private		Total	Public	Private		Total		Public		Private
1	2	3		4	5	6		7	8	9		10	11		12		13
1955	1,286	1,141	145	2	35,280	30,680	4,600	2	27.4	26.9	31.7	2	—		—		—
1960	1,600	1,408	192	2	42,181	36,281	5,900	2	26.4	25.8	30.7	2	—		—		—
1965	1,933	1,710	223		48,473	42,173	6,300		25.1	24.7	28.3		—		—		—
1970	2,292	2,059	233		51,257	45,894	5,363		22.4	22.3	23.0		—		—		—
1975	2,453	2,198	255	2	49,819	44,819	5,000	2	20.3	20.4	19.6	2	—		—		—
1976	2,457	2,189	268		49,478	44,311	5,167		20.1	20.2	19.3		—		—		—
1977	2,488	2,209	279		48,717	43,577	5,140		19.6	19.7	18.4		—		—		—
1978	2,479	2,207	272		47,637	42,551	5,086		19.2	19.3	18.7		—		—		—
1979	2,461	2,185	276	2	46,651	41,651	5,000	2	19.0	19.1	18.1	2	—		—		—
1980	2,485	2,184	301		46,208	40,877	5,331		18.6	18.7	17.7
1981	2,440	2,127	313	2	45,544	40,044	5,500	2	18.7	18.8	17.6	2	—		—		—
1982	2,458	2,133	325	2	45,166	39,566	5,600	2	18.4	18.6	17.2	2	—		—		—
1983	2,476	2,139	337		44,967	39,252	5,715		18.2	18.4	17.0		—		—		—
1984	2,508	2,168	340	2	44,908	39,208	5,700	2	17.9	18.1	16.8	2	—		—		—
1985	2,549	2,206	343		44,979	39,422	5,557		17.6	17.9	16.2		—		—		—
1986	2,592	2,244	348	2	45,205	39,753	5,452	2	17.4	17.7	15.7	2	—		—		—
1987	2,631	2,279	352		45,488	40,008	5,479		17.3	17.6	15.6		—		—		—
1988	2,668	2,323	345	2	45,430	40,189	5,242	2	17.0	17.3	15.2	2	—		—		—
1989	2,713	2,357	356		46,141	40,543	5,599		17.0	17.2	15.7		—		—		—
1990	2,759	2,398	361	2	46,864	41,217	5,648	2	17.0	17.2	15.6	2	—		—		—
1991	2,797	2,432	365		47,728	42,047	5,681		17.1	17.3	15.6		—		—		—
1992	2,823	2,459	364	2	48,694	42,823	5,870	2	17.2	17.4	16.1	2	—		—		—
1993	2,868	2,504	364		49,532	43,465	6,067		17.3	17.4	16.7		—		—		—
1994	2,922	2,552	370	2	50,106	44,111	5,994	2	17.1	17.3	16.2	2	—		—		—
1995	2,974	2,598	376		50,759	44,840	5,918		17.1	17.3	15.7		—		—		—
1996	3,051	2,667	384	2	51,544	45,611	5,933	2	16.9	17.1	15.5	2	—		—		—
1997	3,138	2,746	391		52,071	46,127	5,944		16.6	16.8	15.2		—		—		—
1998	3,230	2,830	400	2	52,526	46,539	5,988	2	16.3	16.4	15.0	2	—		—		—
1999	3,319	2,911	408		52,875	46,857	6,018		15.9	16.1	14.7		305		222		83
2000	3,366	2,941	424	2	53,373	47,204	6,169	2	15.9	16.0	14.5	2	—		—		—
2001	3,440	3,000	441		53,992	47,672	6,320		15.7	15.9	14.3		—		—		—
2002	3,476	3,034	442	2	54,403	48,183	6,220	2	15.7	15.9	14.1	2	—		—		—
2003	3,490	3,049	441		54,639	48,540	6,099		15.7	15.9	13.8		311		236		74
2004	3,536	3,091	445	2	54,882	48,795	6,087	2	15.5	15.8	13.7	2	—		—		—
2005	3,593	3,143	450		55,187	49,113	6,073		15.4	15.6	13.5		—		—		—
2006	3,622	3,166	456	2	55,307	49,316	5,991	2	15.3	15.6	13.2	2	—		—		—
2007	3,656	3,200	456		55,201	49,291	5,910		15.1	15.4	13.0		327		246		80
2008	3,670	3,222	448	2	54,973	49,266	5,707	2	15.0	15.3	12.8	2	—		—		—
2009	3,647	3,210	437		54,849	49,361	5,488		15.0	15.4	12.5		—		—		—
2010	3,529	3,099	429	2	54,867	49,484	5,382	2	15.5	16.0	12.5	2	—		—		—
2011	3,524	3,103	421		54,790	49,522	5,268		15.5	16.0	12.5		241		173		68
2012	3,540	3,109	431	2	55,104	49,771	5,333	2	15.6	16.0	12.4	2	338		247		91
2013	3,555	3,114	441		55,440	50,045	5,396		15.6	16.1	12.2		334		244		90
2014	3,568	3,132	436	2	55,635	50,313	5,323	2	15.6	16.1	12.2	2	336		259		77
20153	3,575	3,143	432		55,763	50,485	5,278		15.6	16.1	12.2		331		254		77
20163	3,580	3,152	428		55,859	50,625	5,234		15.6	16.1	12.2		328		251		76
20173	3,581	3,157	424		55,891	50,710	5,181		15.6	16.1	12.2		323		247		76
20183	3,580	3,160	420		55,892	50,759	5,133		15.6	16.1	12.2		320		245		75
20193	3,601	3,182	420		55,947	50,843	5,104		15.5	16.0	12.2		340		262		78
20203	3,620	3,201	419		56,079	50,996	5,083		15.5	15.9	12.1		338		260		78
20213	3,645	3,225	420		56,216	51,152	5,064		15.4	15.9	12.1		344		266		78
20223	3,671	3,250	421		56,356	51,301	5,055		15.4	15.8	12.0		347		268		80
20233	3,700	3,277	423		56,513	51,455	5,058		15.3	15.7	11.9		351		270		81
20243	3,730	3,303	427		56,632	51,562	5,070		15.2	15.6	11.9		354		272		83
20253	3,759	3,329	431		56,715	51,632	5,083		15.1	15.5	11.8		358		274		84
20263	3,783	3,349	434		56,834	51,738	5,096		15.0	15.4	11.8		353		270		84

—Not available.

1 A teacher is considered to be a new hire for a public or private school if the teacher had not taught in that control of school in the previous year. A teacher who moves from a public to private or a private to public school is considered a new teacher hire, but a teacher who moves from one public school to another public school or one private school to another private school is not considered a new teacher hire.

2 Estimated.

3 Projected.

NOTE: Data for teachers are expressed in full-time equivalents (FTE). Counts of private school teachers and enrollment include prekindergarten through grade 12 in schools offering kindergarten or higher grades. Counts of public school teachers and enrollment include prekindergarten through grade 12. The pupil/teacher ratio includes teachers for students with disabilities and other special teachers, while these teachers are generally excluded from class size calculations. Ratios for public schools reflect totals reported by states and differ from totals reported for schools or school districts. Some data have been revised from previously published figures. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Statistics of Public Elementary and Secondary Day Schools, 1955-56 through 1980-81; Statistics of Nonpublic Elementary and Secondary Schools, 1955 through 1980; 1983-84, 1985-86, and 1987-88 Private School Survey; Common Core of Data (CCD), "State Nonfiscal Survey of Public Elementary/Secondary Education," 1981-82 through 2014-15; Private School Universe Survey (PSS), 1989-90 through 2013-14; Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), "Public School Teacher Data File" and "Private School Teacher Data File," 1999-2000 through 2011-12; Elementary and Secondary Teacher Projection Model, 1973 through 2026; and New Teacher Hires Projection Model, 1988 through 2026. (This table was prepared March 2017.)