School Choice in the United States: 2019

Indicator 4: Household Characteristics of Students in Public and Private Schools

In 2016, the percentage of students in grades 1 through 12 living in poor households was higher for chosen public school students (19 percent) and assigned public school students (18 percent) than for private school students (8 percent).

This indicator examines student enrollment in assigned public, chosen public, and private schools by selected household characteristics, including the number of parents in the household, the highest education level of parents, and the poverty status of the household.¹ Estimates are based on students enrolled in grades 1 through 12 in public and private schools, and they exclude homeschooled students. Data come from the Parent and Family Involvement in Education (PFI) questionnaire of the National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES). For information on the student and school characteristics for students enrolled in public and private schools, see Indicators 2 and 3 of this report.

Figure 4.1. Percentage distribution of students enrolled in grades 1 through 12, by school type and number of parents in the household: 2016

NOTE: Data exclude homeschooled children. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. Although rounded numbers are displayed, the figures are based on unrounded data.
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). See Digest of Education Statistics 2018, table 206.30.

In 2016, the percentage of students in grades 1 through 12 who lived in two-parent households was lowest for chosen public school students (65 percent), followed by assigned public school students (71 percent), and was highest for private school students (81 percent). In contrast, the percentage of students who lived in one-parent households was highest for chosen public school students (31 percent), followed by assigned public school students (25 percent), and was lowest for private school students (18 percent). For students enrolled in each of the three types of schools, 4 percent or less lived in households with only nonparental guardians, and this percentage was higher for assigned and chosen public school students (4 percent each) than for private school students (2 percent).

Figure 4.2. Percentage distribution of students enrolled in grades 1 through 12, by school type and highest education level of parents: 2016

In 2016, higher percentages of assigned and chosen public school students than of private school students in grades 1 through 12 had parents whose highest education level was less than a high school diploma, a high school diploma or GED, or some college (some college also includes parents with a vocational/technical diploma or an associate’s degree). For example, 12 percent of chosen public school students and 11 percent of assigned public school students had parents who did not complete high school, compared with 5 percent of private school students. In contrast, lower percentages of assigned and chosen public school students than of private school students had parents whose highest education level was a bachelor’s degree² or a graduate/professional degree. For example, 15 percent of assigned public school students and 16 percent of chosen public school students had parents who had completed a graduate/professional degree, compared with 32 percent of private school students.

Figure 4.3. Percentage distribution of students enrolled in grades 1 through 12, by school type and poverty status of household: 2016

NOTE: Data exclude homeschooled children. Poor children are those whose family incomes were below the U.S. 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. 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). See Digest of Education Statistics 2018, table 206.30.

In 2016, the percentage of students in grades 1 through 12 living in poor households³ was higher for chosen public school students (19 percent) and assigned public school students (18 percent) than for private school students (8 percent). The percentage of students living in near-poor households was highest for chosen public school students (26 percent), followed by assigned public school students (21 percent), and was lowest for private school students (13 percent). In contrast, the percentage of students living in nonpoor households was lowest for chosen public school students (56 percent), followed by assigned public school students (61 percent), and was highest for private school students (79 percent).

¹ A student is considered to be attending an assigned public school if the parent indicates that the school is the student’s “regularly assigned” school. A student is considered to be attending a chosen public school if the parent indicates that the school is not the student’s regularly assigned school (e.g., a traditional public school located outside the assignment boundary based on the student’s residence, a charter school, or a magnet school).
² Includes parents with some graduate school education but no graduate/professional degree.
³ Poor children are those whose family incomes were below the U.S. 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.

Reference Tables

Table 206.30 (Digest of Education Statistics 2018) 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