DATA

POINT 

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

NCES 2016-166 JULY 2016 

Trends in Hate-Related 

Words at School 

Among Students 

Ages 12 to 18 

Data from the School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime Victimization Survey, a nationally representative 

sample survey of students ages 12 through 18, were used to analyze trends in hate-related words. The SCS study is 

completed every other year. Data from seven consecutive surveys are included in this report: school years 2000–01, 

2002–03, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2010–11, and 2012–13. Analysis is restricted to the SCS respondents in each 

year who were enrolled in grades 6 through 12, and did not receive any part of their education through homeschooling 

during the school year. In the study, students were asked if they had been called a hate-related word in the school 

building, on school property, on the school bus, or going to or from school, or if they had seen hate-related graffiti in 

school. Specifically, students were asked if during the school year anyone called them an insulting or bad name at 

school having to do with their race, religion, ethnic background or national origin, disability, gender, or sexual orientation 

(hate-related words). Students were also asked if they had seen any hate-related words or symbols (graffiti) written in 

school classrooms, school hallways, or outside of the school building. 

Among students between 

the ages of 12 and 18, the 

percentages who reported 

being called a hate-related 

word or seeing hate-related 

graffiti at school were lower 

in 2013 than they were in 2001. 

	 The percentage of students 

ages 12–18 who reported 

seeing hate-related graffiti 

at school fell from 36 percent 

in 2001 to 25 percent in 2013. 

	 Seven percent of students 

ages 12–18 reported being 

called a hate-related word at 

school in 2013. This was the 

lowest percentage reporting 

such an experience across 

the 2001–13 time period. 

FIGURE 1. Percentage of students ages 12 through 18 who reported being called a

hate-related word or seeing hate-related graffiti at school, by year: Selected school 

years 2000–01 through 2012–13 

50 

45 

40 

35 

30 

25 

20 

15 

10

 5

 0 

2001 2003 2005 2007 2009 2011 2013 

Percent 

Year 

Saw hate-related graffiti 

Called hate-related word 

36 36 

38 

35 

29 28 

25 

12 12 11 

10 9 9 

7 

NOTE: Beginning in 2007, the time frame that students were asked to consider in answering the survey questions was the 

school year, whereas in prior survey years the time frame was the previous 6 months. Qualitative testing showed that 

estimates from 2007 onward are comparable to previous years. Tabular data for percentages are available in table 10.1 at 

http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2015/2015072.pdf. 

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime 

Victimization Survey (NCVS), various years, 2001–2013. 

Data in this report are from the School Crime Supplement to the National Crime Victimization 

Survey, a nationally representative sample survey of students ages 12 through 18. To learn more 

about the survey, visit: http://nces.ed.gov/programs/crime. For questions about content or to view 

this report online, go to: http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2016166. 
 

Trends in Hate-Related Words at School Among Students Ages 12 to 18 

FIGURE 2. Among students ages 12 through 18 who reported being called hate-related words at 

school, percentage reporting various types of hate-related words, by year: School years 2000–01 

and 2012–13 

34 

50 

22 

29 

9 

12 

23 

15 

10 

16 15 

18 

60 

50 

40 

30 

20 

10

 0 

Race Ethnicity Disability Gender Sexual orientation Religion 

Types of hate-related words heard 

Percent 

2001 2013 

NOTE: Categories do not sum to 100 percent because students can report being called more than one type of hate-related word. Beginning in 

2007, the time frame that students were asked to consider in answering the survey questions was the school year, whereas in prior survey 

years the time frame was the previous 6 months. Qualitative testing showed that estimates from 2007 onward are comparable to previous 

years. Tabular data for percentages and their standard errors are available at http://nces.ed.gov/programs/crime/crime_tables.asp. 

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, School Crime Supplement (SCS) to the National Crime Victimization Survey 

(NCVS), various years, 2001–2013. 

Among students ages 12 through 18 who reported being called a hate-related word at school, the percentage 

of students called a gender-based hate word decreased from 2001 to 2013, while the percentages of those 

students called race-, ethnically-, and sexual orientation-based hate words increased. 

While the percentage of students who reported being called any hate-related word at school was lower in 2013 than in 

2001 (figure 1), among those reporting they were called hate-related words the distribution among the types of words 

heard has changed (figure 2). 

 The percentage of students who were called hate 

words associated with race was greater in 2013 

(50 percent), as compared to 2001 (34 percent). 

 The percentage of students who reported being called 

ethnically based hate words was greater in 2013 

(29 percent), as compared to 2001 (22 percent). 

 The percentage of students who were called genderbased hate words was lower in 2013 (15 percent), as 

compared to 2001 (23 percent). 

 The percentage of students who reported being called 

a hate word associated with sexual orientation was 

greater in 2013 (16 percent), as compared to 2001 

(10 percent). 

This NCES Data Point presents information on education topics of current interest. 

It was authored by Melissa Cidade and Deborah Lessne of Synergy Enterprises, Inc. 

All estimates shown are based on samples and are subject to sampling variability. 

All differences discussed in this report are statistically significant at the .05 level. 

In the design, conduct, and data processing of National Center for Education 

Statistics (NCES) surveys, efforts are made to minimize the effects of nonsampling 

errors, such as item nonresponse, measurement error, data processing error, or 

other systematic error.