Table 16. Number and percentage distribution of students in public high schools involved in the use or possession of a weapon other than a firearm at school receiving various disciplinary actions, by selected school characteristics: School year 2005

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Table 16. Number and percentage distribution of students in public high schools involved in the use or possession of a weapon other than a firearm at school receiving various disciplinary actions, by selected school characteristics: School year 2005–06

	Disciplinary actions taken for students involved in the use or possession of a weapon¹ other than a firearm at school
	Removals with no continuing services for at least the remainder of the school year				Transfers to specialized schools²				Out-of-school suspen- sions lasting 5 or more days but less than the remain- der of the school year				Other disciplinary action³
School characteristic	Number		Percent		Number		Percent		Number		Percent		Number		Percent
All public schools	3,010		13		6,370		27		10,130		42		4,390		18

Enrollment size
Less than 300	‡		‡		‡		‡		640	!	46	!	‡		‡
300–499	90	!	‡		260	!	24	!	420		39		300	!	28	!
500–999	300	!	9	!	690		21		1,490		46		750		23
1,000 or more	2,550		14		5,270		29		7,580		42		2,800		15

Urbanicity
City	830		9		3,010		34		3,950		45		970		11
Urban fringe	1,620		17		1,980		21		3,500		37		2,290	!	24
Town	200	!	10	!	340	!	18		950		50		410		22
Rural	370	!	10	!	1,040		27		1,730		45		720		19

Crime level where students live⁴
High	320	!	8	!	1,300		34		1,780	!	47		410	!	11	!
Moderate	610		11		1,770		32		2,360		43		800		14
Low	1,280		12		2,180		21		4,300		42		2,480	!	24
Mixed	800		19		1,110		26		1,700		39		700	!	16

Percent minority enrollment⁵
Less than 5 percent	160	!	9	!	210	!	12	!	840		50		470		28
5 to less than 20 percent	570		10		790		14		2,590		45		1,780	!	31	!
20 to less than 50 percent	790		14		1,810		32		2,210		39		870	!	15	!
50 percent or more	1,470		14		3,370		33		4,470		43		1,040		10

Percent of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch
0–20 percent	680		13		1,090		21		2,290		45		1,030		20
21–50 percent	1,540		15		2,850		27		4,140		39		2,070	!	20
More than 50 percent	790		10		2,430		30		3,700		45		1,290	!	16

Percent of students below 15th percentile on standardized tests
0–5 percent	520	!	11	!	1,170		24		1,770		37		1,340	!	28
6–15 percent	1,240		13		2,380		25		3,700		39		2,080	!	22
More than 15 percent	1,250		13		2,820		29		4,660		48		980		10
Percent of students likely to attend college
0–35 percent	660		11		1,780		30		2,660		45		800		14
36–60 percent	990		15		2,040		30		2,610		38		1,190		17
More than 60 percent	1,350		12		2,540		23		4,870		44		2,410	!	22

Percent of students who consider academic achievement important
0–25 percent	340	!	14	!	690	!	29		1,090	!	45		290	!	12	!
26–50 percent	440		10		1,370		30		2,350		51		430	!	9
51–75 percent	1,240		13		2,360		24		3,680		38		2,490	!	26
More than 75 percent	990		14		1,960		27		3,010		42		1,180		17

Percent male enrollment
0–44 percent	250	!	‡		460	!	‡		770	!	34	!	‡		‡
45–55 percent	2,490		12		5,530		27		8,940		44		3,210		16
More than 55 percent	270	!	19	!	370	!	26	!	410	!	29		360	!	25	!

Student-to-FTE ratio⁶
Less than 12 students	790		12		1,380		21		2,160		33		2,170	!	33
12–16 students	1,120		13		2,240		26		4,100		48		1,150		13
More than 16 students	1,110		13		2,740		31		3,870		44		1,070		12

Number of classroom changes⁷
0–3 changes	270	!	24	!	140	!	13	!	530		47		‡		16	!
4–6 changes	1,920		14		3,790		27		5,960		42		2,460		17
More than 6 changes	820		10		2,430		28		3,640		42		1,760		20

Regular use of law enforcement⁸
Regular use	2,750		13		6,080		28		9,120		42		3,930		18
No regular use	260	!	13	!	290	!	14	!	1,010		50		460	!	23

Number of serious discipline problems⁹
No problems	1,320		13		2,660		27		3,860		39		2,010	!	20
1 problem	600		14	!	990		23		2,110		49		660		15
2 problems	550	!	12		1,450		31		1,570		34		1,050	!	23	!
3 or more problems	550		11		1,270		25		2,590		51		680	!	13	!

Transfers as a percentage of enrollment¹⁰
Less than 6 percent	350	!	13		450		17		1,460		54		430		16
6 to less than 11 percent	420		11		1,170		30		1,640		42		660	!	17	!
11 to less than 21 percent	1,220		17		1,680		23		3,350		46		970		13
21 percent or more	1,010		10		3,070		30		3,680		36		2,330	!	23

Prevalence of schoolwide disruptions¹¹
No disruptions	2,280		12		4,920		26		8,210		43		3,880		20
Any disruptions	740	!	16		1,440		31		1,920		42		520	!	11	!

Percent of students absent on a daily basis
0–2 percent	‡		‡		‡		42	!	190	!	41		‡		‡
3–5 percent	860		14		1,970		32		2,390		39		970		16
6–10 percent	1,660		13		2,840		23		4,970		40		2,890		23
More than 10 percent	430		9		1,370		28		2,590		53		520	!	11	!

Prevalence of violent incidents¹²
No violent incidents	‡		‡		‡		‡		#		#		#		#
Any violent incidents	2,990		13		6,320		27		10,130		43		4,390		18
# Rounds to zero.
! Interpret data with caution. The standard error for this estimate is from 30 percent to 50 percent of the estimate’s value.
‡ Reporting standards not met. The standard error for this estimate is equal to 50 percent or more of the estimate's value.
¹ Weapon was defined for respondents as "any instrument or object used with the intent to threaten, injure, or kill. This includes look-alikes if they are used to threaten others."
² Specialized school was defined for respondents as "a school that is specifically for students who were referred for disciplinary reasons, although the school may also have students who were referred for other reasons. The school may be at the same location as your school."
³ Other disciplinary actions include suspension less than 5 days, detention, etc.
⁴ Respondents were asked, "How would you describe the crime level in the area(s) in which your students live?" Response options included "high level of crime," "moderate level of crime," "low level of crime," and "students come from areas with very different levels of crime."
⁵ Responding schools that did not have race/ethnicity on the sampling frame (2 percent of schools) are excluded from the base.
⁶ Student-to-FTE ratio was calculated by dividing the total number of students enrolled in the school by the total number of full-time-equivalent teachers and aides. The total number of full-time-equivalent teachers and aides is a combination of the full-time and part-time teachers and aides, including special education teachers and aides, with an adjustment to compensate for the part-time status.
⁷ Respondents were asked, "How many classroom changes do most students make in a typical day?" Responses exclude morning arrival and afternoon departure.
⁸ Respondents were asked, "During the 2005–2006 school year, did you have any sworn law enforcement officers, security guards, or security personnel present at your school at least once a week?"
⁹ Serious discipline problems include student racial tensions, student bullying, student sexual harassment of other students, student verbal abuse of teachers, widespread disorder in classrooms, student acts of disrespect for teachers, gang activities, and cult or extremist group activities. If a respondent reported that any of these problems occurred daily or weekly in their school, each was counted once in the total number of serious discipline problems.
¹⁰ Transfers as a percentage of enrollment combines the number of students who were transferred to a school and the number of students who were transferred from a school divided by the total number of students enrolled in the school.
¹¹ Schoolwide disruptions include actions that disrupted school activities such as death threats, bomb threats, and chemical, biological, or radiological threats. Respondents were instructed to exclude all fire alarms, including false alarms.
¹² Violent incidents include rape or attempted rape, sexual battery other than rape, physical attack or fight with or without a weapon, threat of physical attack with or without a weapon, and robbery with or without a weapon.
NOTE: "At school" was defined for respondents to include activities that happen in school buildings, on school grounds, on school buses, and at places that hold school-sponsored events or activities. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. The number of incidents, students, or disciplinary actions reported for a specified offense will not always be equal. This may be because a single incident could involve multiple victims or because no disciplinary action is taken for an incident. Responses were provided by the principal or the person most knowledgeable about crime and safety issues at the school. High schools are defined as schools in which the lowest grade is not lower than grade 9 and the highest grade is not higher than grade 12.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), 2005–06 School Survey on Crime and Safety (SSOCS), 2006.

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