Are Socially Integrated Education Systems More Effective and Fair? Evidence From Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Countries

• In Event: 16.017 - Inequalities in Opportunity to Learn Across Nations

Abstract

Socially integrated education systems hold the potential to increase academic outcomes at the country level as well as improve equity of outcomes for underserved students. Concerns exist, however, whether the academic achievement of privileged students is harmed. We use a large international dataset to examine the relationship between school social integration and the achievement of students from different socioeconomic backgrounds. Preliminary results show that social integration is associated with higher achievement for students from low socioeconomic backgrounds but is not related to the achievement of students from high socioeconomic backgrounds. The second part of the analysis will explore cross-national variations, seeking to uncover the factors that explain why social integration in some countries is related to both effectiveness and equity.

Authors

• Laura Perry, Murdoch University

• Christopher A. Lubienski, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign