This is the first of a series of reports providing information and statistics on subjects of interest to educational policymakers and practitioners. Based on a research paper, "Course-Taking Patterns in the 1980s," by Margaret E. Goertz, the report's focus is on what is being studied and how this has changed over time (generally between 1982 and 1987) for high school graduates and college-bound high school seniors. Information on subjects studied by high school graduates and college-bound seniors is presented. Course-taking pattern information focuses on fourth-, eighth-, and 11th-grade students. The information is placed in context via a brief discussion of school reform trends. Data are broken down variously by subject, race, parents' educational attainment, and/or sex. Racial groups represented include White, Black, Hispanic, American Indian and Asian American; some detail is provided for English-versus non-English speakers and for Asian Americans and Hispanics. It is concluded that a principal element of educational reform in the 1980s has been the increase in course-taking requirements for high school graduation, primarily the increase in the number of years that students are required to study academic subjects. Beyond that, strong recommendations have been made to require academic courses for students expecting to go to college and to increase attention in the elementary and junior high school years to subjects supporting an increasingly technological economy. Twenty-three data tables, mostly showing data between 1982 and 1987; 20 graphs; and technical notes on the study methodology are included. (TJH)