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The rising influence of family background on early school performance

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  • Markussen, Simen
  • Røed, Knut
Abstract
We use administrative data from Norway to examine recent trends in the association between parents’ prime age earnings rank and offspring's educational performance rank by age 15/16. We show that the intergenerational correlation between these two ranks has increased over the past decades, and that offspring from economically disadvantaged families have fallen behind. This has happened despite public policies contributing to leveling the playing field. We show that the expansion of universal childcare and, more recently, the increased teacher-pupil ratio in compulsory school, have disproportionally benefited lower class offspring. The rising influence of parents’ earnings rank can partly be explained by a strengthened intragenerational association between earnings rank and education among parents, as educational achievement has an inheritable component. Yet a considerable unexplained rise in the influence of family background remains, consistent with evidence pointing toward increased parental involvement in children's lives, plausibly in response to higher returns to education.

Suggested Citation

  • Markussen, Simen & Røed, Knut, 2023. "The rising influence of family background on early school performance," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecoedu:v:97:y:2023:i:c:s0272775723001383
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2023.102491
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    Cited by:

    1. Zhao, Yuejun & Markussen, Simen & Røed, Knut, 2024. "School Starting Age and the Social Gradient in Educational Outcomes," IZA Discussion Papers 16851, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Blaabæk, Ea Hoppe & Andersen, Lars Højsgaard & Fallesen, Peter, 2024. "From unequal injuries to unequal learning? Socioeconomic gradients in childhood concussions and the impact on children's academic performance," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 341(C).
    3. Friedman-Sokuler, Naomi & Justman, Moshe, 2024. "Family background, education, and earnings: The limited value of "test-score transmission"," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1388, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    4. Markussen, Simen & Nareklishvili, Maria & Røed, Knut, 2024. "Overeducation and Economic Mobility," IZA Discussion Papers 16798, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Intergenerational mobility; Achievement gaps; Parental influence; Meritocracy; GPA;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion

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