The amount of time students are exposed to material is one measure of student access to learning opportunities. This information sheet compares instructional time for students in several developed countries. However, how effectively classroom time is used had the greatest influence on student learning. The average amount of time 13-year-olds spent in instruction during the 1990-91 school year ranged from 875 hours in Japan to 1,177 hours in Taiwan. Students in the United States spent over 1,000 hours exposed to instruction, slightly more than students in Canada, England, Korea, and Germany. Public and private students in the United States spend about the same amounts of time in school, but the average time in school does vary across the states, from around 1,100 hours in Hawaii and Maine to around 1,250 hours in Mississippi. Two tables, one graph, and a map illustrate the amount of time students spend in school. (SLD)