Students in Our City Schools

Resources on student demographics in America’s city schools, as well as national trends in access to and participation in school music opportunities.

“High School Music Ensemble Students in the United States: A Demographic Profile”

Written by Kenneth Elpus and Carlos R. Abril

 A comprehensive survey of participation in high school music courses. Elpus and Abril construct a national demographic of secondary school music students and identify significant associations between participation and student race, ethnicity, language spoken at home, gender, and socioeconomic status.

 Elpus, Kenneth, and Carlos R. Abril. "High School Music Ensemble Students in the United States: A Demographic Profile." Journal of Research in Music Education 59, no. 2 (2011): 128-145.

“Arts Education in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools: 1999-2000 and 2009-10”

Written by Basmat Parsad and Maura Spiegelman

The results of a national study conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics focusing on instruction, conditions, and teaching of arts education in the United States, both at elementary and secondary levels.

Parsad, Basmat, and Maura Spiegelman. "Arts Education in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools: 1999-2000 and 2009-10. NCES 2012-014." National Center for Education Statistics (2012).

Urban Education in America

National Center for Educational Statistics

Resources for anyone interested in educational changes taking place in urban America. Provides access to recent data collected by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), as well as the Census Bureau. Features data on urban schools, enrollment, demographics, and more.

Student Demographics

U.S. Department of Education

A repository of data sources that focus on student demographics at the school, district, state, and national levels.

School: The Story of American Public Education

written by Sarah Mondale and Sarah B. Patton

An excellent, readable overview of public schooling in the United States. Provides a historical context for  current policies and inequities in urban education.

Mondale, Sarah, and Sarah B. Patton, eds. School: The story of American public education. Beacon Press, 2001.