The present report, based on the Schools and Staffing Survey of 1993-94, is designed to update the picture of private schools in the United States, based on responses from a nationally representative sample of 2,585 private schools and 8,372 teachers in those schools. Most private schools belong to some national group, and NCES consulted with those groups to develop a survey questionnaire that would address informational needs of the private school community. Staff of schools belonging to many other groups also contributed their time to the completion of this survey. These profiles contain information on about Schools and Students, Teachers and Principals, and Climate, Goals, and Outcomes.
Most private schools are small.
A quarter have fewer than 50 students, and only one-fifth have more than 300 students. Seventy-one percent of private school students attend schools in cities or on the fringe of large cities. Almost equal numbers of boys and girls attend private schools. The objective qualifications of private school teachers and principals, on average, are less than those of public school teachers and principals. Such in-kind compensation is rarely available to public school teachers.