Refugees and Locals' Educational Outcomes: Evidence from the Venezuelan Refugee Crisis in Northern Brazil

• In Event: Migration and Peer Effects

Abstract

This paper studies how the influx of school-age Venezuelan refugees affected locals' educational outcomes in Boa Vista (Brazil) after 2017. The city is the capital of a northern Brazilian state (Roraima) and the main entry point for Venezuelan migrants into the country. To answer this question, we constructed a panel of schools and students using administrative data from 2010 to 2023. First, we found that Venezuelan students were placed in schools with enrollment capacity (lower student-to-teacher and student-to-classroom ratios), which was possible because of the destruction of amenities such as reading rooms, libraries, and computer and science labs. Our analysis also revealed that migrants were disproportionately placed in the first grade, were consistently older than their Brazilian peers in grades 1 to 5, and performed worse, particularly in Portuguese exams. Peer effects were, however, limited and didn't seem to have affected the retention, dropout, or exam performance of Brazilians. Further analysis using not yet explored administrative data on grade placement exams will assess how the disproportional refugee first-grade enrollment affects Venezuelan educational outcomes. It will shed light on how to integrate into the host country's public schools migrant kids who are not fluent in the local language.

Author

• Carlos Brito, University of California, Davis
  Presenting Author