This report explores why some schools may be better than others at helping students learn. It responds to the congressionally mandated Special Study Panel on Education Indicators, which asked the National Center for Education Statistics to examine indicators of the health of the nation's educational system. The report reviews the literature on school quality and is intended to help policy makers and researchers understand those characteristics that are most likely related to student learning. It identifies the availability and reliability of national indicators and assesses the current status of schools by examining and critiquing these national indicator data. The report claims that school quality, as it affects student learning, is demonstrated by the training and talent of the teaching force, what goes on in the classrooms, and the overall culture and atmosphere of the school. Within these three areas, the document identifies 13 indicators of school quality that recent research suggests are related to student learning. Findings indicate that students learn more from teachers with high academic skills and who teach subjects related to their undergraduate or graduate studies than they do from teachers with low academic skills and who teach subjects unrelated to their training. (Contains 146 references.) (RJM)