The primary purpose of the "Digest of Education Statistics" 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 both government and private sources, and draws especially on the results of surveys and activities carried out by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). To qualify for inclusion, 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 educational attainment, finances, federal funds for education, libraries, and international comparisons. Although the "Digest" contains information on federal education funding, more detailed information on federal activities is available from federal education program offices. In addition to updating many of the statistics that have appeared in previous years, this edition contains new material, including (1) Number and percentage of public school students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch; (2) Percentage distribution of children at about 2 and 4 years of age, by type of child care arrangement and selected child and family characteristics; (3) Percentage distribution of quality ratings of child care arrangements of children at about 4 years of age, by type of arrangement and selected child and family characteristics; (4) Children's specific language, literacy, mathematics, color knowledge, and fine motor skills at about 4 years of age, by age of child and selected characteristics; (5) Average National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reading scale scores of 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-graders, by selected student and school characteristics; (6) Average NAEP writing scale score and percentage of students attaining NAEP writing achievement levels, by selected student characteristics and grade level; (7) Average NAEP mathematics scale scores of 4th-, 8th-, and 12th-graders, by selected student and school characteristics; (8) Average NAEP mathematics scale score of 8th-graders and percentage reporting various attitudes toward mathematics work, by frequency of attitude and selected student and school characteristics; (9) Average NAEP science scale score of 12th-graders and percentage reporting various attitudes toward science, by selected student and school characteristics; (10) Percentage of elementary and secondary school students who do homework outside of school, whose parents check that homework is done, and whose parents help with homework, by frequency and selected student and school characteristics; (11) Total full-year enrollment in degree-granting institutions, by control and type of institution and state or jurisdiction; (12) Degrees in Arabic, Chinese, Korean, and Russian conferred by degree-granting institutions, by level of degree; (13) Full-time, first-time degree/certificate seeking undergraduate students enrolled in degree-granting institutions, by participation and average amount awarded in financial aid programs, and type and control of institution; and (14) Percentage of 18- to 25-year-olds reporting substance abuse during the past 30 days and the past year, by drug used and selected characteristics. 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. The document includes seven chapters: (1) All Levels of Education; (2) Elementary and Secondary Education; (3) Postsecondary Education; (4) Federal Programs for Education and Related Activities; (5) Outcomes of Education; (6) International Comparisons of Education; and (7) Libraries and Educational Technology. Preceding these 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. Three appendixes conclude the document: (1) Guide to Sources; (2) Definitions; and (3) Index of Table Numbers. (Contains 29 figures and 438 tables.) [For the 2007 "Digest of Education Statistics," see ED500670.]