Students' Perceptions of their Personal Safety Both At School and Away From School

"Between 1995 and 2015, the percentage of students who reported being afraid of attack or harm at school decreased overall (from 12 to 3 percent), as well as among male students (from 11 to 3 percent) and female students (from 13 to 4 percent). In addition, the percentage of students who reported being afraid of attack or harm at school decreased between 1995 and 2015 for White students (from 8 to 3 percent), Black students (from 20 to 3 percent), and Hispanic students (from 21 to 5 percent). A declining trend was also observed away from school: between 1999 (the first year of data collection for this item) and 2015, the percentage of students who reported being afraid of attack or harm away from school decreased from 6 to 2 percent overall, from 4 to 1 percent for male students, and from 7 to 3 percent for female students. The percentages of White, Black, and Hispanic students who reported being afraid of attack or harm away from school also decreased during this period (from 4 to 2 percent for White students and from 9 to 3 percent each for Black and Hispanic students).

"Between the two most recent survey years, 2013 and 2015, no measurable differences were found in the overall percentages of students who reported being afraid of attack or harm, either at school or away from school. However, the percentage of male students who reported being afraid of attack or harm away from school was lower in 2015 (1 percent) than in 2013 (2 percent).

"In 2015, a higher percentage of female students than of male students reported being afraid of attack or harm at school (4 vs. 3 percent) and away from school (3 vs. 1 percent). In general, the percentages of students who reported being afraid of attack or harm at school and away from school were not measurably different across racial/ethnic groups. However, a higher percentage of Hispanic students (5 percent) than of White students (3 percent) reported being afraid of attack or harm at school in 2015. Similarly, a higher percentage of Hispanic students (3 percent) than of White students (2 percent) reported being afraid of attack or harm away from school.

"Higher percentages of 6th-graders (5 percent) and 7th- and 8th-graders (4 percent each) reported being afraid of attack or harm at school than did 10th- and 12th-graders (2 percent each) in 2015. The percentage of students who reported being afraid of attack or harm away from school was higher for 8th-graders (3 percent) than for 10th-graders (1 percent)."