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Status and Trends in the Education of American Indians and Alaska Natives: 2008

NCES 2008-084
September 2008

Parental Education


In 2007, about 84 percent of American Indian/Alaska Native children ages 6–18 had mothers who had attained at least a high school education.

Figure 5.3. Percentage of children ages 6–18 whose parents had completed high school, by race/ ethnicity and parent: 2007
Percentage of children ages 6–18 whose parents had completed high school, by race/
ethnicity and parent: 2007
NOTE: Parents include adoptive and stepparents but exclude parents not residing in the same household as their children. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Commerce, Census Bureau, Current Population Survey (CPS), Annual Social and Economic Supplement, 2007.

Parents'1 educational attainment has been identified as one of several factors positively related to children's academic achievement and socioeconomic levels (Grissmer et al. 1994; Grissmer et al. 2000). In 2007, a larger percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native children ages 6–18 had mothers who had attained a high school education (84 percent) than Hispanic children of the same age (60 percent). On the other hand, the percentage of American Indians/ Alaska Natives was lower than the percentage for White children of the same age (95 percent). A higher percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native than Hispanic children had fathers who had attained at least a high school education (90 percent vs. 59 percent). No measurable differences were observed between the percentage of American Indians/Alaska Natives having mothers or fathers who had completed high school compared to Black, Pacific Islander, or Asian children.

View Table View Table 5.3

1 Parents include adoptive and step parents but exclude parents not residing in the same household as their children.