Navigating Institutions. Parents' Knowledge of the Educational System and Students' Success in Education.

Autor/inn/en	Forster, Andrea G.; Werfhorst, Herman G. van de
Titel	Navigating Institutions. Parents' Knowledge of the Educational System and Students' Success in Education.
Quelle	In: European sociological review, 37 (2020) 1, S. 48-64Infoseite zur Zeitschrift PDF als Volltext Link als defekt meldenVerfügbarkeit
Beigaben	Literaturangaben
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	1468-2672
DOI	10.1093/esr/jcz049
Schlagwörter	Bildungsgang; Soziale Herkunft; Familie; Kind; Sozialer Einfluss; Studie; Bildungseinrichtung
Abstract	This study investigates whether families navigate educational institutions more successfully if they have a higher knowledge of the pathways in the educational system that are available to their children. We also study whether this kind of knowledge mediates secondary effects of social origin, i.e. differences in educational pathways once achievement differences between children are accounted for. The role of parents' knowledge is consistent with various sociological theories concerning educational inequality. Knowledge can affect families' ability to make rational choices for education but it can also be understood as a form of cultural capital. We use longitudinal student cohort data from the Netherlands combined with individual-level register data on educational attainment to study the importance of knowledge for short-term outcomes (up- and downward transitions in secondary education as well as track placement) and final educational attainment. Our results show that parents' knowledge is a significant predictor of educational success net of parents' education, socio-demographic characteristics, and demonstrated ability. If we apply a stricter test to the measure, however, we can see that knowledge matters for downward transitions and obtaining a tertiary degree but that the effect is negligible for upward transitions and track placement if other mechanisms such as cultural capital and aspirations are considered. Further, we conclude that knowledge matters especially for transitions in the educational system that require a move to a new and unknown school environment such as post-secondary or tertiary education. The study shows that knowledge is one useful avenue to investigate when we are confronted with the question why social disparities in educational decision-making arise.
Erfasst von	DIPF \| Leibniz-Institut für Bildungsforschung und Bildungsinformation, Frankfurt am Main (extern)
Update	2024/1