The 2003 edition of Education at a Glance enables countries to see themselves in the light of other countries' performances. It provides a comparable, up-to-date array of indicators on the performance of education systems that represents the consensus of professional thinking on how to measure the current state of education internationally. The focus of this book is on the quality of learning outcomes, the policy levers and contextual factors that shape these outcomes, and the broader private and social returns that accrue to investments in education. Included is a comparative picture of student performance near the beginning and end of compulsory education that extends to knowledge and skills in important subject areas as well as patterns of learning strategies and engagement in learning. The picture is not limited to aggregate country performance, but also incorporates variations within countries. This allows for an examination of issues of equity in the provision and outcomes of education, on dimensions such as gender, age, socioeconomic background, type of institution, or field of education. This report also includes new information on student learning conditions that provides a better understanding of some of the determinants of educational success. This information elaborates on the integration of information and communication technologies in the instructional process, as well as on teacher qualifications, teacher working conditions, and other factors affecting teacher supply and demand. Finally, a significantly larger number of OECD countries are now providing data for many indicators. Through the World Education Indicators program, a wide range of nonmember countries have also contributed to this year's edition, extending the coverage of some of the indicators to almost two-thirds of the world population.