Falling Behind
Socio-demographic profiles of educationally disadvantaged youth. Evidence from PISA 2000-2012

Publication date: 2016_11
Publication series:
Innocenti Working Papers
No. of pages: 24
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Abstract
Early identification of students who fail to reach basic, age-appropriate literacy
skills is the first step to ensure timely support of their learning. Understanding those drivers of low achievement that
are beyond students’ control enables policy makers to foster equal opportunity
for achievement. Drawing on the OECD Programme for International Student
Assessment (PISA) 2000 to 2012 data, this paper examines the risk factors of
low achievement, defined here as scoring below the 10th percentile of the
distribution, and their evolution over time, across 39 industrialized nations.
These include an aggregate measure of socio-economic status (SES), immigration
background, non-test language spoken at home, living in a single parent
household, and gender. We find that family SES, is one of the most consistent
predictors of low-achievement (across a diverse range of educational systems)
and most persistent (across time). Amongst other results, we also find no
evidence that the gender gap in reading – in favour of girls – narrowed over
time, leaving boys at risk of educational disadvantage in the majority of
countries.
Available in:
English