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Status and Trends in the Education of Racial and Ethnic Minorities
NCES 2007-039
September 2007

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Table 12c.

Percentage distribution of high school graduates, by highest level of English courses completed and race/ethnicity: 1998, 2000, and 2004


Year and race/ethnicity No English1 Low
academic level2
Regular English (no low or honors) courses Advanced academic level3
Total Less than 50 percent of courses 50-74 percent of courses 75-100 percent of courses
1998              
Total 0.9 13.7 56.1 29.3 9.1 7.7 12.4
White 0.7 11.6 56.9 30.8 9.4 8.1 13.2
Black 1.1! 17.6 54.6 26.6 7.9 7.4 11.3
Hispanic 2.2 22.2 53.3 22.3 7.9 5.8 8.6
Asian/Pacific Islander 0.9 12.9 54.3 31.9 12.6 7.4! 11.9!
American Indian/Alaska Native 0.3! 17.6! 64.6 17.6 6.8! 5.1! 5.7!
               
2000              
Total 0.7 10.7 54.7 33.9 11.6 7.2 15.1
White 0.6! 8.5 54.7 36.2 11.6 7.8 16.8
Black 0.9! 14.3 57.5 27.3 11.9 5.6 9.8
Hispanic 1.5! 19.8 52.6 26.1 11.3 6.1 8.8
Asian/Pacific Islander 0.8! 9.6 46.9 42.7 10.3 7.8 24.6
American Indian/Alaska Native 0.8! 11.8! 60.7 26.8! 16.7! 3.8! 6.3!
               
2004              
Total 0.7 0 10.8 55.9 32.7 9.2 7.6 15.9
White 0.6! 7.5 56.5 35.4 9.5 8.3 17.6
Black 0.5! 15.4 60.2 23.9 8.3 6.2 9.4
Hispanic 1.3! 21.1 52.8 24.9 8.5 5.3 11.1
Asian/Pacific Islander 0.1! 13.2 43.6 43.1 9.0 8.1 26.0
American Indian/Alaska Native 1.0! 16.1! 61.7 21.2! 2.9! 1.6! 16.8!
! Interpret data with caution.
1 Indicates that student transcript records did not list any recognized English courses; however, these graduates may have studied some English. If graduates took only English as a second language (ESL) courses for credit, they would be listed in this category.
2 Low academic level courses include all general English courses classified as "below grade level." Graduates may have taken a general English course classified as regular or "honors" and be classified in the low academic level if the percentage of "below grade level" courses completed was the plurality of courses completed.
3 Includes graduates who completed a general English course classified as "below grade level" if they completed a greater percentage of "honors" courses than "below grade level" courses.
NOTE: For each graduate, the percentages of completed courses classified as "below level," "at grade level," and "honors" were calculated. (Not all graduates completed 4 years of English.) After the percentage of graduates at each level had been calculated, the percentage of graduates who fit the category requirement for each level was determined, as explained in Appendix B: Supplemental Notes. Race categories exclude persons of Hispanic origin. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP), 1998 and 2000 High School Transcript Studies (HSTS); and Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002/04), "High School Transcript Study."