Figure 5.3. Percentage of 8th-grade students in public schools with more than 25 books at home, by race/ethnicity: 2003

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), Reading Assessment, 2003.

In 2003, American Indian/Alaska Native 8th-graders attending public schools were less likely to report having more than 25 books in their home than the total, White, and Asian/Pacific Islander populations of 8th-grade public school students (62 percent vs. 70 percent, 80 percent, and 69 percent, respectively). American Indian/Alaska Native students were more likely to report having more than 25 books at home than Hispanic public school 8th-graders (46 percent).

A similar pattern is seen with access to encyclopedias and magazines. American Indian/Alaska Native 8th-graders were less likely to have regular access to encyclopedias at home than the total population of their 8th-grade peers (75 percent vs. 83 percent), as well as their White, Black, and Asian/Pacific Islander peers (87 percent, 79 percent, and 83 percent, respectively). Additionally, American Indians/Alaska Natives were less likely than all 8th-graders and their White and Black 8th-grade peers to have access to magazines (63 percent vs. 72 percent, 78 percent, and 66 percent, respectively). On the other hand, American Indian/Alaska Native students were more likely to report having access to encyclopedias and magazines at home than their Hispanic counterparts (75 percent vs. 71 percent, and 63 percent vs. 57 percent, respectively).

The percentage of American Indian/Alaska Native 8th-grade public school students reporting regular access to a newspaper at home is similar to the percentages for the total and Asian/Pacific Islander students (46 percent, 47 percent, and 46 percent, respectively). American Indian/Alaska Native 8th-grade public school students were less likely than their White counterparts and more likely than their Hispanic counterparts to have regular access to a newspaper at home (46 percent vs. 50 percent and 34 percent, respectively).

View Table 5.3