All About Education in America
Facts and figures on the nation’s school system.
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School Stats - Students across the nation are heading back to school this week. With statistics compiled by the Associated Press, a look at the facts and figures about education in America. —Dominique Zonyéé(Photo: David L Ryan/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
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How Many Students Are There? - There are around 60 million students in America who are either home schooled or enrolled in public or private schools. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) estimated that in 2013, 50.1 million children will be enrolled in U.S. public schools this school year and 5.2 million will be in private school.(Photo: Chris Hondros/Getty Images)
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Who Is Teaching Them? - There are approximately 3.3 million elementary and secondary public teachers in 2013, leading to a student teacher ratio of 15-to-1, according to the NCES. (Photo: Digital Vision)
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How Much Is Spent on Education? - The average teacher in a public school earned about $56,000 for the school year that ended in 2011, according NCES. However, teacher salaries are just a fraction of annual education expenses. NCES says $591 billion will be spent during the new school year, which averages $11,810 per student.(Photo: Martin Poole)
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What are Students Being Taught? - Most schools are focused on the Common Core State Standard, which is a curriculum created to focus on math and reading. Forty-five states and the District of Columbia have adopted the standards, which many say are necessary to ensure that high school graduates are ready for college or a career.(Photo:Tyler Edwards)
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Dressed for Success - According to the National Retail Federation, families are spending $50 less on annual back-to-school shopping. The NRF estimated family's back-to-school spending for elementary and secondary school in 2013 would average about $634.78 — a decrease from the estimated $684.78 for the 2012 school year.(Photo: Apliiq)
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How Safe Is My Child? - More than 1.2 million students between ages 12 and 18 were victims of crimes at school in 2011, according to NCES and the Bureau of Justice Statistics.(Photo: Alto/Milena Boniek)
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Jump Start on College Courses - Although more students are taking Advanced Placement exams, that doesn’t mean there are more students earning college credits while still in high school. More than 2 million students took 3.7 million Advanced Placement exams in 2012, according the College Board. However, the number of students who scored a 3, usually the minimum grade to earn credit, dropped to 59.2 percent in 2012 from 65.5 percent in 1992.(Photo: Alejandro Rivera/Getty Images)
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What Is the Cost of College? - Two-year public community colleges will cost in-state students and their parents about $10,550 this academic year, while the price tag for attending a four-year public institution of higher education averages about $17,860, according to the College Board. The cost of a private four-year college or university averages about $39,518 a year.(Photo: Alex Slobodkin/Getty Images)
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How Can I Get Financial Help? - For those taking out the federal Stafford loans this year, the rate is 3.9 percent for both subsidized and unsubsidized undergraduate loans, 5.4 percent for loans taken by graduate students and 6.4 percent for loans taken by parents.(Photo: Peter Glass)
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After Investing in College, How Many Will Graduate? - At graduation ceremonies across the country this academic year, colleges and universities will grant 943,000 associate's degrees, 1.8 million bachelor's degrees, 778,000 master's degrees and 177,000 doctoral degrees, according to the NCES.(Photo: Jason Reed / Reuters)
