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Digest of Education Statistics
2018 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest


Table 206.30. Percentage distribution of students enrolled in grades 1 through 12, by public school type and charter status, private school orientation, and selected child and household characteristics: 2016
[Standard errors appear in parentheses]
Selected child or household characteristic and public school type Total, all schools Public school, total Public school type1 Public school charter status Private school, total Private school orientation
Assigned Chosen Traditional2 Charter Religious Nonsectarian
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Percentage distribution of
   all enrolled students, by school
   type and charter status
100.0   (†) 90.5   (0.32) 70.6   (0.61) 19.8   (0.52) 85.9   (0.44) 4.6   (0.31) 9.5   (0.32) 7.6   (0.32) 1.9   (0.18)
Percentage distribution of students
   in schools of each type or
   status, by characteristic
                                                     
Total, all students 100.0   (†) 100.0   (†) 100.0   (†) 100.0   (†) 100.0   (†) 100.0   (†) 100.0   (†) 100.0   (†) 100.0   (†)
Sex of child                                                      
Male 51.8   (0.67) 52.0   (0.72) 52.2   (0.87) 51.2   (1.69) 52.0   (0.78) 51.4   (3.38) 50.3   (1.92) 50.2   (2.18) 50.9   (5.01)
Female 48.2   (0.67) 48.0   (0.72) 47.8   (0.87) 48.8   (1.69) 48.0   (0.78) 48.6   (3.38) 49.7   (1.92) 49.8   (2.18) 49.1   (5.01)
                                                       
Race/ethnicity of child                                                      
White 51.8   (0.41) 50.7   (0.44) 54.6   (0.57) 36.9   (1.19) 51.8   (0.47) 30.4   (2.85) 62.1   (1.85) 64.0   (2.15) 54.6   (5.02)
Black 14.3   (0.19) 14.5   (0.26) 12.1   (0.41) 23.2   (1.27) 13.9   (0.31) 26.2   (3.63) 12.2   (1.34) 12.3   (1.57) 11.6   (2.75)
Hispanic 23.8   (0.28) 24.7   (0.35) 23.3   (0.52) 29.9   (1.43) 24.1   (0.37) 36.0   (3.09) 15.0   (1.38) 15.4   (1.51) 13.5   (3.25)
Asian/Pacific Islander 5.7   (0.26) 5.6   (0.29) 5.6   (0.30) 5.7   (0.63) 5.6   (0.30) 4.7   (1.37) 6.3   (1.05) 4.4   (0.90) 13.7   (3.54)
Asian 5.4   (0.25) 5.3   (0.28) 5.3   (0.29) 5.3   (0.60) 5.4   (0.28) 4.0   (1.15) 6.0   (1.02) 4.1   (0.85) 13.7   (3.54)
Pacific Islander 0.3   (0.05) 0.3   (0.06) 0.2   (0.06) 0.4 ! (0.19) 0.2   (0.05)   (†)   (†)   (†)   (†)
Other3 4.5   (0.26) 4.5   (0.29) 4.5   (0.33) 4.3   (0.49) 4.6   (0.30) 2.7   (0.71) 4.4   (0.63) 3.9   (0.64) 6.7   (1.85)
                                                       
Disability status of child as
   reported by parent
                                                     
Has a disability 16.9   (0.57) 17.3   (0.61) 17.4   (0.68) 17.0   (1.04) 17.3   (0.61) 15.9   (2.00) 13.3   (1.20) 12.7   (1.40) 15.8   (2.86)
Does not have a disability 83.1   (0.57) 82.7   (0.61) 82.6   (0.68) 83.0   (1.04) 82.7   (0.61) 84.1   (2.00) 86.7   (1.20) 87.3   (1.40) 84.2   (2.86)
                                                       
Grade level                                                      
Grades 1 through 5 43.5   (0.33) 43.6   (0.35) 44.2   (0.51) 41.3   (1.15) 43.2   (0.40) 51.6   (3.23) 42.7   (1.89) 43.2   (2.14) 40.9   (4.79)
Grades 6 through 8 25.2   (0.33) 24.9   (0.34) 25.3   (0.52) 23.8   (1.11) 24.8   (0.37) 27.9   (2.89) 27.4   (1.55) 27.8   (1.74) 25.8   (3.80)
Grades 9 through 12 31.3   (0.27) 31.5   (0.32) 30.5   (0.44) 34.8   (1.09) 32.0   (0.35) 20.5   (2.13) 29.9   (1.60) 29.0   (1.84) 33.4   (3.54)
                                                       
Number of parents in the household                                                      
Two parents 70.3   (0.51) 69.3   (0.57) 70.5   (0.72) 64.9   (1.34) 69.3   (0.57) 68.2   (3.61) 80.6   (1.52) 80.0   (1.71) 82.7   (2.59)
One parent 25.7   (0.55) 26.6   (0.62) 25.4   (0.73) 30.7   (1.29) 26.4   (0.62) 28.7   (3.43) 17.7   (1.46) 18.2   (1.67) 15.4   (2.46)
Nonparental guardians 3.9   (0.26) 4.2   (0.28) 4.1   (0.37) 4.5   (0.62) 4.2   (0.30) 3.0   (0.59) 1.8   (0.37) 1.8   (0.36)   (†)
                                                       
Highest education level of parents                                                      
Less than a high school diploma 10.7   (0.30) 11.3   (0.34) 10.9   (0.44) 12.4   (1.13) 11.0   (0.35) 17.1   (3.53) 5.5   (1.27) 5.8   (1.37)   (†)
High school diploma or GED 20.0   (0.27) 21.3   (0.30) 21.3   (0.48) 21.4   (1.28) 21.5   (0.36) 17.7   (3.26) 8.0   (1.43) 8.9   (1.62)   (†)
Vocational/technical, associate’s
   degree, or some college
25.7   (0.44) 26.6   (0.45) 26.7   (0.58) 26.0   (1.07) 26.7   (0.47) 25.0   (2.57) 17.5   (1.57) 19.5   (1.76) 9.7   (2.46)
Bachelor’s degree/some graduate
   school
26.7   (0.46) 25.6   (0.47) 26.0   (0.60) 24.2   (0.99) 25.8   (0.50) 22.8   (1.96) 37.2   (1.60) 38.2   (1.89) 33.1   (3.76)
Graduate/professional degree 16.8   (0.18) 15.2   (0.19) 15.0   (0.27) 16.0   (0.78) 15.1   (0.19) 17.4   (1.87) 31.8   (1.68) 27.5   (1.75) 49.0   (5.11)
                                                       
Poverty status of household4                                                      
Poor 17.3   (0.42) 18.3   (0.47) 18.1   (0.50) 18.8   (1.26) 18.2   (0.46) 19.9   (2.80) 7.6   (1.36) 7.0   (1.38) 9.9 ! (4.05)
Near-poor 21.4   (0.45) 22.2   (0.51) 21.3   (0.59) 25.6   (1.50) 21.9   (0.52) 28.2   (4.09) 13.1   (1.59) 14.9   (1.90) 6.0   (1.70)
Nonpoor 61.4   (0.46) 59.5   (0.49) 60.6   (0.66) 55.6   (1.33) 59.9   (0.51) 51.8   (3.60) 79.3   (1.79) 78.1   (2.07) 84.1   (3.83)
                                                       
Locale                                                      
City 31.2   (0.74) 30.5   (0.79) 25.6   (0.80) 48.1   (1.58) 29.1   (0.74) 57.8   (3.20) 37.2   (1.76) 36.8   (2.02) 38.6   (3.24)
Suburban 44.5   (0.73) 44.1   (0.77) 46.0   (0.82) 37.7   (1.47) 44.6   (0.76) 34.8   (2.90) 48.1   (1.90) 47.9   (2.19) 48.6   (3.38)
Town 7.9   (0.37) 8.5   (0.40) 9.3   (0.47) 5.4   (0.56) 8.7   (0.42) 3.4   (0.95) 3.0   (0.42) 3.0   (0.49) 2.6 ! (0.89)
Rural 16.4   (0.42) 16.9   (0.45) 19.1   (0.51) 8.7   (0.66) 17.5   (0.46) 4.0   (1.14) 11.8   (1.19) 12.2   (1.33) 10.2   (2.42)
                                                       
Region                                                      
Northeast 19.9   (0.50) 19.3   (0.57) 20.8   (0.65) 13.8   (1.23) 19.4   (0.57) 16.8   (2.93) 26.1   (1.81) 25.0   (2.02) 30.4   (4.34)
South 23.9   (0.53) 24.0   (0.56) 23.2   (0.65) 26.8   (1.57) 24.4   (0.56) 16.7   (2.15) 23.3   (1.51) 21.8   (1.73) 29.2   (3.50)
Midwest 21.9   (0.55) 21.5   (0.60) 22.3   (0.66) 18.2   (1.42) 21.5   (0.58) 20.6   (3.61) 26.5   (1.65) 31.0   (1.83) 8.4   (1.65)
West 34.2   (0.63) 35.3   (0.68) 33.7   (0.79) 41.2   (1.73) 34.7   (0.71) 45.9   (3.25) 24.1   (1.59) 22.2   (1.82) 32.1   (3.71)
                                                       
Public school type1                                                      
Assigned 70.6   (0.61) 78.0   (0.57) 100.0   (†)   (†) 82.1   (0.53) 100.0   (†)   (†)   (†)   (†)
Chosen 19.8   (0.52) 21.8   (0.58)   (†) 100.0   (†) 17.6   (0.54)   (†)   (†)   (†)   (†)
†Not applicable.
!Interpret data with caution. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is between 30 and 50 percent.
‡Reporting standards not met. The coefficient of variation (CV) for this estimate is 50 percent or greater.
1 In 31 cases, questions about whether a student’s school was assigned were not asked because parents reported the school as a private school, and it was only later identified as a public school based on administrative data. Due to the missing data on whether the school was assigned or chosen, these cases were included neither with assigned public schools nor with chosen public schools. These cases were included in the public school totals, however, and they could still be accurately classified as either traditional or charter schools based on administrative data.
2 Includes all types of public noncharter schools.
3 Includes American Indian/Alaska Native, Two or more races, and race/ethnicity not reported.
4 Poor children are those whose family incomes were below the Census Bureau’s poverty threshold in the year prior to data collection; near-poor children are those whose family incomes ranged from the poverty threshold to 199 percent of the poverty threshold; and nonpoor children are those whose family incomes were at or above 200 percent of the poverty threshold. The poverty threshold is a dollar amount that varies depending on a family’s size and composition and is updated annually to account for inflation. In 2015, for example, the poverty threshold for a family of four with two children was $24,036. Survey respondents are asked to select the range within which their income falls, rather than giving the exact amount of their income; therefore, the measure of poverty status is an approximation.
NOTE: Data exclude homeschooled children. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic ethnicity. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Parent and Family Involvement in Education Survey of the National Household Education Surveys Program (PFI-NHES:2016). (This table was prepared February 2018.)

2018 Tables and Figures All Years of Tables and Figures Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest