National Education Longitudinal Study, 1988: Second Follow-Up (1992)

<p>A nationally representative sample of eighth-graders were first surveyed in the spring of 1988. A sample of these respondents were then resurveyed through four follow-ups in 1990, 1992, 1994, and 2000. On the questionnaire, students reported on a range of topics including: school, work, and home experiences; educational resources and support; the role in education of their parents and peers; neighborhood characteristics; educational and occupational aspirations; and other student perceptions. Additional topics included self-reports on smoking, alcohol and drug use and extracurricular activities. For the three in-school waves of data collection (when most were eighth-graders, sophomores, or seniors), achievement tests in reading, social studies, mathematics and science were administered in addition to the student questionnaire. To further enrich the data, students' teachers, parents, and school administrators were also surveyed. Coursework and grades from students' high school and postsecondary transcripts are also available in the restricted use dataset - although some composite variables have been made available in the public use file. The second follow-up took place early in 1992, when most sample members were in the second term of their senior year. The second follow-up provides a culminating measurement of learning in the course of secondary school, and also collects information that will facilitate investigation of the transition into the labor force and postsecondary education after high school. Because the NELS:88 sample was freshened to represent the high school class of 1992, trend comparisons can be made to the high school classes of 1972 and 1980 that were studied in NLS-72 and HS&B. The NELS:88 second follow-up returned to students who were identified as dropouts in 1990, and identified and surveyed additional students who had left school since the prior wave.(NCES 2/13/2015)</p>