"The Condition of Education, 2002" is an indicator report, summarizing the health of education, monitoring important developments, and showing trends in major aspects of education. Indicators examine relationships; show changes over time; compare or contrast subpopulations, regions, or countries; or assess characteristics of students from different backgrounds and types of schools. An indicator is policy relevant and problem oriented; it typically incorporates a standard against which to judge progress or regression. This year, 44 indicators were selected that represent a consensus of professional judgment about significant national measures of the condition and progress of education at this time. The report leads with special analyses of private schools and nontraditional undergraduates. The indicators that follow are in six sections: (1) Participation in Education; (2) Learner Outcomes; (3) Student Effort and Educational Progress; (4) Contexts of Elementary and Secondary Education; (5) Contexts of Postsecondary Education; and (6) Societal Support for Learning. The report includes text, tables, and charts for each indicator plus the technical supporting data, supplemental information, and data sources. Appendices compose over half of the publication and contain supplemental tables and notes, estimates of standard errors for the statistics, data sources, a glossary, and a bibliography that includes publications and surveys of the National Center for Education Statistics. (RT)