After growing by 27 percent from 1994 to 2007, the number of high school graduates is expected to increase by just 1 percent between then and the 2019-20 school year, according to new projections from the National Center for Education Statistics.
The report forecasts steady increases, however, in elementary and secondary public school enrollment, the numbers of students from most minority groups, and the number of teachers staffing K-12 schools.
But the growth of per-pupil expenditures is expected to slow in the years ahead, according to the report. Following a 29 percent increase from 1994 to 2007, education spending is predicted to grow by 14 percent from 2006 to 2020, to an average of $11,400 per pupil.
The NCES notes that its projections do not account for possible policy changes or changes in other factors.
