Why Immigrant Background Matters for University Participation: A Comparison of Switzerland and Canada

This article extends our understanding of the difference in university participation between students with and without immigrant backgrounds by contrasting outcomes in Switzerland and Canada and by the use of new longitudinal data that are comparable between the countries. The research includes family socio‐demographic characteristics, family aspirations regarding university education, and the student's secondary school performance as explanatory variables of university attendance patterns. In Switzerland, compared with students with Swiss‐born parents, those with immigrant backgrounds are disadvantaged regarding university participation, primarily due to poor academic performance in secondary school. In comparison, students with immigrant backgrounds in Canada display a significant advantage regarding university attendance, even among some who performed poorly in secondary school. The included explanatory variables can only partly account for this advantage, but family aspirations regarding university attendance play a significant role, while traditional variables such as parental educational attainment are less important. In both countries, source region background is important. Possible reasons for the cross‐country differences are discussed.     

The demographic and socio-economic characteristics of post-1965 immigrants to New York City: a comparative analysis by national origin

This article analyses and compares the demographic and socio‐economic characteristics of persons born abroad who immigrated to New York City after 1965 and still lived in the City in 1990. Using data from the 1990 Census, we classify persons into the twenty four largest national origin groups and compare their demographic and socio‐economic characteristics (sex, age, educational attainment, labour force participation, unemployment, occupation, income, and poverty). We pose and answer three empirical questions. The first question is: what are some of the main differences by national origin in the composition of persons immigrating to New York City after 1965? The second question is: what are some of the main differences in the location of post‐1965 immigrants in New York's socio‐economic structure? The third question is: what are some of the main differences in the economic rewards received by persons who immigrated to New York City since 1965? We find that immigrants with less than a high school education have higher labour force participation rates than the US‐born population in the same educational category and also have slightly higher earnings. Immigrants with a high school degree have labour force participation rates close to (or slightly higher than) the average for the US‐born population but their incomes are slightly lower than the average income for the US‐born population. Immigrants with a college degree have participation rates similar or slightly lower that those of the US‐born population while their earnings are significantly lower that those of US‐born college graduates.     

Preschool attendance and school-age profiles: A revision

Data collected from the Uruguayan household survey (ENHA) of year 2006 is used to provide more evidence and revision on the longer-term impact of pre-primary education on subsequent school attendance and accumulated years of education. In order to control for unobserved individual or household characteristics that may affect both the participation in a preschool program and the later educational attainment, we instrumented preschool attendance with average attendance rates by age in each locality. Previous research found a positive effect both on school attendance and accumulated years of education, and this effect magnifies as children grow up. But, till 2006 survey, there's no accurate data available to calculate properly the accumulated years of education a child should have and so the causality between preschool and the outcome accumulated years of education was only approximated. Thus, a major contribution of this paper is that for the first time, ENHA makes possible to work with real data on school grade repetitions (estimate accurately the possible lag in children education) and we find results which are different to previous findings. In sum, though preschool impacts positively on subsequent school attendance, preschool seems not to have an increasing impact on years of education as children grow up if we take into account new data on grade repetition. Also this paper broadens the scope of the previous research adding data on rural areas and taking also into account children who do not live with both biological parents. Spreading out preschool education seems to be a successful policy option in a country with large drop-out rates but to cope with school grade repetition new options should be studied.     

The Roles of Racial Discrimination,Cultural Mistrust,and Gender in Latina/o Youth's School Attitudes and Academic Achievement

Gender gaps in achievement are particularly pronounced among Latina/os, who are among the population most affected by the academic achievement gap. This study examined the roles of racial discrimination, cultural mistrust, and economic value of education in the academic achievement of urban, low‐income Latina/o adolescents. Participants were 346 high school students. Structural equation modeling revealed that the model of associations was a better fit for male students than for female students. Cultural mistrust mediated the relationship between racial discrimination and values of education, and perceived limitations of education predicted lower attendance rates for male students but not for female students. Implications for future research and interventions are discussed.     

The Effect of Immigrant Communities on Foreign‐Born Student Achievement1

This paper explores the effect of the human capital characteristics of co‐ethnic immigrant communities on foreign‐born students’ math achievement. We use data on New York City public school foreign‐born students from 39 countries merged with census data on the characteristics of the immigrant household heads in the city from each nation of origin and estimate regressions of student achievement on co‐ethnic immigrant community characteristics, controlling for student and school attributes. We find that the income and size of the co‐ethnic immigrant community has no effect on immigrant student achievement, while the percent of college graduates may have a small positive effect. In addition, children in highly English proficient immigrant communities test slightly lower than children from less proficient communities. The results suggest that there may be some protective factors associated with immigrant community members’ education levels and use of native languages.     

The Short Term Effects of Immigrant Students on the Educational Achievements of Native‐Born Students

Since 1989 nearly one million immigrants from the FSU have arrived in Israel. Although well‐educated on average, most of these immigrants lacked economic means. The purpose of the present study is to examine whether the presence of immigrants in schools affected the educational achievements of their Israeli‐born peers. We analyzed data pertaining to 8,288 Israeli tenth graders who attended 208 schools in 1994. Respondents' records were obtained from the Ministry of Education and the Bureau of the Census. Using hierarchical models we examined the effects of the proportion of immigrant students in a school and of their parents' education on the probability that Israeli‐born students in the school would earn matriculation certificates. Results did not yield evidence of any negative spillover effects on the educational achievements of the native students. Moreover, the presence of many immigrant students with high educational backgrounds increased the likelihood of Israeli‐born students earning matriculation certificates.     

Patterns of Intermarriages and Cross‐Generational In‐Marriages among Native‐Born Asian Americans

This article examines patterns of post‐1965 native‐born Asian Americans’ intermarriages and cross‐generational in‐marriages using a combined sample of the 2001–2006 American Community Surveys from the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series. The analysis focuses on ethnic and gender differences in intermarriage and cross‐generational in‐marriage rates and patterns. About 55 percent of native‐born Asian Americans are found to be intermarried while another 23 percent are married to 1.5‐generation or first‐generation co‐ethnic immigrants. Thus only 22 percent of native‐born Asian Americans are married to co‐ethnic native‐born Asian Americans. As expected, there are significant ethnic and gender differences in intermarriage and cross‐generational in‐marriage rates and patterns. This study is significant because it is the first study that has examined intermarriage patterns among post‐1965 native‐born Asian Americans, the majority of whom are likely to be children of post‐1965 Asian immigrants, using the most recent Census data available. It is also significant for studies of the new second generation in general in that it is the first study to show patterns of cross‐generational in‐marriage among members of the new second generation.     

School outcomes for homeless children: differences among sheltered,doubled-up,and poor,housed children

Some definitions of child homelessness include the category of children who are doubled-up with others due to loss of housing or economic hardship, while others do not. Are doubled-up children more like children in shelters or children who are poor but housed? A quasi-experimental comparison group design was used to test empirically for differences in school mobility, school attendance, and reading and mathematics achievement among three groups of sheltered, doubled-up, and poor, housed children, respectively, with each group containing 49 students. Sheltered students were found to have significantly higher levels of school mobility and significantly lower rates of school attendance than students in the other two groups. An elaboration of the continuum of risk model is proposed to differentiate experiences of sheltered and doubled-up students. Recommendations are made for policy responses as well as future research.     

The determinants of religiosity among immigrants and the native born in Europe

This paper examines differences in religious behaviors of the native born and immigrants in European countries, measured by self-reported religiosity, frequency of praying, and frequency of church attendance. Using the European Social Survey, we first show that, on average, the religiosity of immigrants is greater than that of the native born and is greater than that of the stayers in the European origins, even among those who report they have no religious affiliation. Hypotheses are tested that can explain these observations. Differences in individual characteristics, such as age, education, income, marital status, and notably religious denominations, partly account for the overall differences. Religiosity of migrants declines with duration in the destination, approaching the levels of both the native born in destination countries and of the stayers in European origin countries. Both origin and destination country characteristics affect religiosity, such as economic development, religious pluralism, religious freedom, and societal attitudes towards religion, suggesting that both economic and culture persistence and adaptation take place.     

Addressing systemic neglect of young indigenous children's rights to attend school in the northern territory,Australia

Indigenous children in the Northern Territory (NT) of Australia have the highest school non‐attendance rates and the lowest literacy and numeracy outcomes in Australia. The NT Department of Health and Families classifies failure to send children to school as neglect, and as such, a form of child abuse. This paper contends that the failure to provide children with learning opportunities by a lack of insistence by authorities on attendance is a form of systemic neglect. It suggests that an educative approach is required to lead rather than coerce students into attending school, encouraging maximum participation in learning experiences that bridge cultural landscapes, and is inviting, inclusive and informed. The purpose of this paper is to recommend changes to ongoing systemic neglect of school truancy by examining models that build an Indigenous teaching staff and in so doing, integrate culturally responsive teaching with systemic support to produce a ‘school attending’ culture. Ethics approval for this paper has been sought and approved from the NT Catholic Education Office. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Eighth‐Grade School Form and Resilience in the Transition to High School: A Comparison of Middle Schools and K‐8 Schools

We examine a set of academic and social outcomes in 9th grade, comparing middle school attendees with those who attended K‐8 schools. Previous research with these data has shown that there are few differences in 8th‐grade outcomes by school type. Here we extend these findings to determine whether school form influences student outcomes in the first year of high school. The results reveal several domains in which attendance at a middle school results in worse outcomes (e.g., greater rates of course failure); however, we find that a large portion of the difference by type of a student's 8th‐grade school is accounted for by differential rates of attendance at the district's magnet schools. That is, our results indicate that type of school attended during the middle grades is significantly and positively related to magnet school attendance and thereby on the academic outcomes in the 9th‐grade year.     

Generation Status,Social Capital,and the Routes Out of High School

This study investigates immigrant-native differences in the activities of adolescents 2 years after their sophomore year of high school. We employ longitudinal data for the modeling of duration, nativity and generation differences in education and employment activities during late adolescence. We ask if the same human and social capital characteristics employed as explanations for nativity differences in achievement are predictive of high school participation versus other activities such as labor force participation within a cohort of adolescents. Despite their lower levels of human capital and lower previous academic performance, recent immigrants who arrive in the United States as adolescents are more likely than those who arrive earlier or those born in the United States to persevere in high school. Access to familial social capital and attitudinal measures help explain some of this effect. As for those who do leave school early, socioeconomic status and language background play a role in the activities respondents pursue. While recent immigrants are more likely to persevere in high school, once they leave they are no more likely to pursue additional education than their U.S. born counterparts.     

An evaluation of the effects of an integrated services program for multi-service use families on child welfare and educational outcomes of children

The purpose of the study was to evaluate a program that provides integrative case management for families dependent on at least two government services (e.g., child welfare, disability, chemical dependency, vocational rehabilitation). In the current study, we focused on effects of services on children's educational and child welfare outcomes two years after program exit. Children enrolled in the program were compared to a community comparison sample through propensity score matching. None of the group differences was significant. However, outcomes related to child maltreatment (number of child maltreatment reports accepted by Child Protective Services and out-of-home placements) improved dramatically within two years after exit. Outcomes in the education area were less uniformly positive. On the one hand, children's attendance was high and school mobility was low. In addition, there was a significant reduction in the number of children receiving special education services two years after exit. Nevertheless, a third of the children were still receiving special education services two years after exit, and their academic performance on standardized reading and math tests was quite poor. Thus, the intensive case management model was related to successful outcomes in an area directly targeted by the program (child maltreatment), but the gains did not generalize to another domain that was not an explicit focus of the program (academic achievement).     

Enrolment in Mathematics and Physics at The Advanced Level in Secondary School Among Two Generations of Highly Skilled Immigrants

This research focuses on enrolment in advanced level Mathematics and Physics in secondary school among first and second generations of Former Soviet Union immigrants and third generation Israeli‐born Jews. The article made use of the Israeli Ministry of Education's database, which includes data on all students who finished their secondary education with a matriculation certificate in 2013. Our findings show the advantage of enrolment in Physics, which is perceived as the most difficult subject, among FSU immigrant students compared to the third generation of Israeli‐born students. This advantage may be explained by their STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics)‐related cultural capital. However, first‐generation FSU students were less likely to be enrolled in advanced‐level Mathematics compared to third‐generation Jews. These findings may emphasize the role of the Israeli education system as a gatekeeper in entering more prestigious Mathematics.     

Opportunities and challenges in secondary education for blind/vision-impaired people in the Republic of Ireland

Until comparatively recently blind/vision-impaired young people were generally assigned to particular education settings based on their impairment. Restructuring of the education system commenced in the Republic of Ireland in the 1990s, resulting in significant changes in special education including a language of inclusive education within policy initiatives. In the research upon which this article is based, the educational experiences of blind/vision-impaired people, the factors that impacted on these experiences and how these facilitated or inhibited their future opportunities were the primary foci for the study. This article explores the themes of how the post-primary school curriculum was experienced by blind/vision-impaired students and their future expectations and aspiration. In terms of policy development and practice, it is paramount to ensure both effective curriculum participation and transition opportunities are enabled rather than disabled for these students.     

Targeting the reach of educational support interventions in Kenya

The Free Primary Education program introduced in Kenya in 2003 increased primary school attendance rates. However, disparities in primary school education are evident throughout the nation. Using data from the 2003 and 2008–09 Kenya Demographic Health Surveys (KDHS), this study investigates the household characteristics—in addition to poverty—associated with poor school attendance. Using bivariate analysis and logistic regression we confirm that indeed household wealth is a factor in accessing free primary education. Younger children, those living in households headed by a non-biological parent are also less likely to attend school. Moreover households in arid and semi-arid regions of the country—areas characterized by historical socio-economic and political marginalization report significantly low primary school attendance rates. Findings from this study call attention to continued education disparities in spite of the free tuition program. The study further directs policy makers on how best to deploy scarce resources to target households most unable to provide adequate educational supports to children.     

Persistent Inequality or Liberation from Social Origins? Determining Who Attends Graduate and Professional Schools in Canada's Expanded Postsecondary System

Drawing on the 2000 National Graduates Survey and follow‐up of graduates, this research examines who goes to graduate and professional schools in Canada. A greater proportion of students are continuing on to higher levels of education in recent years, yet it remains unclear if family background affects these decisions. The results indicate that social origins influence graduate school attendance both directly through parents’ level of education and indirectly through student performance, aspirations, and academic confidence. Field of study and region of undergraduate institution also play a role in shaping educational outcomes, suggesting students may be partially “liberated” from their family backgrounds by virtue of their undergraduate experiences.     

The Willingness to State an Opinion: Inequality,Don't Know Responses,and Political Participation

Most explanations of inequality in political participation focus on costs or other barriers for those with fewer economic, educational, and “cognitive” resources. I argue, drawing on Pierre Bourdieu's work on “political competence,” that social position in the form of income also structures political participation through differences in the sense that one is a legitimate producer of political opinions. I test whether income differences in participation persist net of costs by examining nonparticipation in a setting in which barriers to participation are low: answering political survey questions. Lower‐income people are more likely than others to withhold political opinions by saying “don't know” net of differences in education, “cognitive ability,” or engagement with the survey exercise. Further, political “don't know” rates predict voting rates, net of other predictors. Efforts to democratize participation in American politics must attend not only to the costs of involvement but also to class‐based differences in individuals' relationship to political expression itself.     

Education,Skills, and Wage Gaps in Canada and the United States

We analyse data from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies to reveal that immigrants in Canada and the United States make over $200 less per month than native‐born workers. In the United States, immigrants disproportionately work in low‐wage occupations, leading to large mean national differences between immigrants and native workers. The wage differential disappears after accounting for education and cognitive skills, indicating policies must focus on reducing education and skill gaps in the United States. In Canada, an immigrant wage gap persists in nearly all occupational fields, suggesting that the better skilled and educated immigrants in Canada are not receiving the same wage premium as native workers. We close with implications for policy and future research.