The categorization of students according to the physical characteristics they have at birth is called race.
Public schools typically ask parents or guardians to identify the race and ethnicity of their children. Almost half of all schools ask parents to select one of the five standard federal categories. A much smaller percentage ask parents to select from a set of categories used by the school district. In just a few of schools, parents may write their own specifications when identifying the race or ethnicity of their children.
