Do migrant children replicate their parents’ social economic status? Statistical analysis of educational achievement of migrant children in China

Abstract

Using a large dataset from the China Educational Panel Survey (CEPS) of 2013–2014 (n=1,593), this paper identifies possible reasons that affect the academic achievement of students in grades 7 and 9 who come from migrant families, and explores whether schools with high teaching quality can remedy disadvantages of low socioeconomic backgrounds. Results of regression analyses show that, against common wisdom, we found that neither family finance nor father’s occupation significantly influence student academic performance. In addition, school type, either public or private (including special schools for children from migrant families), did not have significant influences on the achievement of those migrant children; only school ranking did. We conclude that public school resources cannot remedy the disadvantages of family background of migrant children, and migrant children do replicate the fate of their parents.