Educational Attainment and Residential Location

Abstract

The effects of residential location at age 16 and current residential location on measures of educational attainment are estimated. Particular attention is given to the effects of migration and family background on educational outcomes. It is shown that central cities and suburbs of large metropolitan areas in the United States have significantly higher levels of educational attainment. The reasons for this include migration of more highly educated individuals to large metropolitan areas and family background factors that are more favorable to higher levels of educational attainment in large urban areas. It is also shown that although urban advantages in schooling for respondents at age 16 have declined over time, urban advantages for respondents when they are older have increased. Data from the National Opinion Research Center's General Social Survey are used.This study examines the relationship between residential location and educational attainment. This is an important topic for research. Although there is a substantial amount of research on the determinants of educational attainment and other educational outcomes, the relationship between residential location and educational outcomes has not been the particular focus of many studies. It is of value to determine if differences in educational outcomes by residential location are caused in part by location or if they are a result of location. This is important if one wants to ensure fairness in educational opportunities by location. For example, educational levels might be relatively high even if the quality of schooling is relatively low if a location is sufficiently attractive to highly educated households. It could also be the case that the quality of schooling is relatively high in a location

Splintering School Districts: Understanding the Link between Segregation and Fragmentation

“…In the most recent generation, 34 those who grew up in the suburbs of large metropolitan areas were most likely to have a college degree (Sander 2006). Further, municipalities with high percentages of college graduates may have a stronger interest in the creation and maintenance of a separate school district that is privileged along race and/or class lines.…”

A Reproducible Framework for Visualizing Demographic Distance Profiles in US Metropolitan Areas

“…Such nuanced relationships between residential location and educational attainment are also found in studies of spatial assimilation; Alba and Logan (1991), for example, find that while an increase in educational attainment is associated with suburban residential location for most groups, the inverse is true for non-Hispanic whites and for Japanese. More recent scholarship suggests a growing relationship between central city location and high educational attainment; Sander (2006) finds that central cities of large metropolitan areas in the US have high levels of educational attainment, but also high school dropout rates; Walker (2017) also finds that migrants to large metropolitan areas with bachelor's or graduate degrees are far more likely to move near to the urban core than migrants with high school diplomas as their highest level of educational achievement.…”

On Being College Prep: Examining the Implementation of a “College for All” Mission in an Urban Charter School

“…Students of color and low income students do not attend college at the same rate as their counterparts even though there has always been a heightened interest in college preparation within communities of color (Anderson 1988;Brown 1999;Billingsley 1992;Hochschild 1995;McDonough 2004;Noeth and Wimberly 2002;Noguera 2001;Robinson-English 2006;Wilson and Allen 1987). The race and class polarization of urban communities means that urban students of color are more likely to live in communities where very few adults have had the opportunity to attend college (Cabrera and La Nasa 2000a, b;Choy et al 2000;Farmer-Hinton 2002Lin 2000;Lin 2001;O'Connor 2000;Sander 2006;Wilson 1987Wilson , 1996. And, due to the relationship between local wealth and school quality, these students are also more likely to attend schools that do not have the resources to adequately prepare them for college because of high student-counselor ratios, fewer available resources targeted toward college planning and preparation, and a limited school-wide emphasis on college preparation (Ceja 2000;Farmer-Hinton 2008;Freeman 1997Freeman , 1999González et al 2003;Hossler et al 1999;Kaufman and Chen 1999;Kozol 1991;Levine and Nidiffer 1996;McDonough 2004;Noguera 2003;Plank and Jordan 2001;Roderick et al 2006;Schneiderand Stevenson 1999;Stanton-Salazar 1997;Stanton-Salazarand Dornbusch 1995;Veneziaet al 2003;Wimberly andNoeth 2004;Yu...…”