Table 8. Average class size for school teachers in elementary schools, secondary schools, and schools with combined grades, by classroom type, school type, and selected school characteristics: 2007

Characteristics of Public, Private, and Bureau of Indian Education Elementary and Secondary School Teachers in the United States: Results From the 2007–08 Schools and Staffing Survey

NCES 2009-324
June 2009

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Table 8. Average class size for school teachers in elementary schools, secondary schools, and schools with combined grades, by classroom type, school type, and selected school characteristics: 2007–08

	Elementary schools		Secondary schools				Combined grade schools
	Average class size for teachers in self-contained classes	Average class size for teachers in departmentalized instruction	Average class size for teachers in self-contained classes		Average class size for teachers in departmentalized instruction		Average class size for teachers in self-contained classes		Average class size for teachers in departmentalized instruction


School type and selected school characteristic
School type and selected school characteristic
All schools	20.1	23.3	18.6		23.0		15.3		16.5

All public schools	20.3	23.7	18.6		23.3		15.1		16.8

School classification
Traditional public	20.3	23.7	18.5		23.3		14.6		16.6
Charter school	21.7	23.6	33.1		20.3		21.5		18.8

Community type
City	20.5	24.4	22.2		24.3		12.6		17.6
Suburban	21.0	24.4	17.9		24.5		12.9		17.7
Town	19.9	23.6	14.7		21.8		16.1		16.6
Rural	19.2	22.3	18.5		21.2		16.3		16.4

Student enrollment
Less than 100	13.0	12.0	13.7		13.6		8.9		9.0
100-199	18.0	18.9	21.4		17.2		11.1		11.0
200-499	20.0	21.2	18.4		19.1		15.7		16.2
500-749	20.9	24.1	15.6		22.0		18.8		20.3
750-999	20.8	26.8	15.6		23.3		18.6		20.6
1,000 or more	20.1	25.0	20.4		24.9		20.9		22.6

Percent of K-12 students who were approved for free or reduced-price lunches


0-34	20.8	24.8	17.6		23.8		16.2		17.0
35-49	19.8	22.5	19.9		23.3		16.1		18.4
50-74	19.8	23.0	17.6		22.8		15.2		17.5
75 or more	20.4	23.8	21.2		21.2		12.0		13.2
School did not participate in free or reduced-price lunch program

	19.2	18.5	21.3		19.0		18.1		14.8

All BIE schools	17.1	15.4	21.4	!	15.2		15.6		12.5

All private schools	18.1	19.8	18.4		19.9		15.4		16.3

School classification
Catholic	20.8	23.0	15.5	!	23.3		25.1	!	19.3
Other religious	15.2	15.6	25.7		17.6		15.4		17.2
Nonsectarian	17.0	16.3	14.6	!	10.1		14.2		14.4

Community type
City	18.3	20.7	22.0		21.6		17.0		16.4
Suburban	19.1	20.6	11.9		19.8		15.0		17.4
Town	16.8	17.4	7.1		18.5		16.3		15.0
Rural	14.4	14.5	33.5	!	14.7		13.6		14.1

Student enrollment
Less than 100	12.7	9.5	14.8	!	8.5		9.8		8.3
100-199	16.7	15.6	21.5	!	15.8		13.0		12.1
200-499	21.2	21.9	21.1		17.3		18.0		16.0
500-749	25.4	29.2	23.0		22.9		18.5		19.0
750 or more	24.4	34.1	26.0		25.6		22.0		20.7

Percent of K-12 students who were approved for free or reduced-price lunches


0-34	18.4	20.9	29.0	!	20.4		20.6		15.2
35-49	17.2	17.6	7.4		16.8		12.4		15.0
50-74	17.8	20.6	13.7		13.3	!	13.2		23.4
75 or more	17.7	16.8	12.0		17.1		15.7		21.7	!
School did not participate in free or reduced-price lunch program

	18.0	19.6	15.5		20.1		14.8		16.2
! Interpret data with caution. The standard error for this estimate is equal to 30 percent or more of the estimate's value.
NOTE: BIE school refers to schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) that are operated by the BIE, a tribe, or a private contractor and not by a regular school district. Among all school teachers, 28% teach self-contained classes in elementary schools, 1% in secondary schools, and 3% in combined schools; 17% teach departmentalized classes in elementary schools, 27% in secondary schools, and 6% in combined schools; 16% teach other types of classes, such as elementary subject specialist classes, team taught classes, and “pull-out” classes or“push-in” classes, in elementary schools, 2% in secondary schools, and 1% in combined schools.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS), "Public School Teacher, BIE School Teacher, and Private School TeacherData Files," 2007–08.

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