Regional inequality in university attainment in seven African countries since 1960

Wealth-Based Inequalities in Higher Education Attendance: A Global Snapshot

“…A long tradition of comparative studies has examined how educational systems reproduce unequal education and employment outcomes despite policies of expansion (Shavit et al, 2007). Yet the vast majority of these studies focus on North America, Europe, and other industrialized and high-income countries, where data infrastructures exist to gather demographic data at the individual level (Bernardi & Ballarino, 2014; Koucký et al, 2007; Shavit et al, 2007; for exceptions, see Ou & Hou, 2019; Simson, 2021). Consequently, our understanding of how system-wide reforms affect inequality has relied primarily on studies from North America and Europe, which differ in important ways from other world regions.…”

“…Similarly, Krafft and Alawode (2018) used household surveys from Egypt, Jordan, and Tunisia to calculate a D-Index as an indicator of inequality in access to higher education, which they argued is the first of its kind. Other recent studies point to the insights that can be gleaned by calculating era-specific indicators of a country’s extent of inequality in higher education access and attainment (Simson, 2021). Recognizing the need for cross-nationally comparable measures of national inequality in higher education, this study calculates country-level measures of wealth-based inequality in higher education attendance rates around the world and describes cross-national patterns.…”

The role of secondary school teachers in shaping a political culture of ethnicity and ethnic favouritism: the case of Kenya

“…Whereas the former find evidence in favour, the latter refutes those findings. At university-level too, there is no impact of coming from the home region of the president in power in recent times (Simson 2021). 8 Second, Simson & Green (2020) argue that both studies rest on problematic assumptions.…”

“…Rapid educational attainment across, and convergence among, all larger ethnic groups, they contend, overshadows any marginal advantage of having a coethnic president: rather than conclusive evidence of ethnic favouritism, the slow-down of the rate of Kikuyu compared with Kalenjin attainment under Moi's presidency, for instance, is due to the former reaching the ceiling of primary education earlier. And, the head start of Kikuyu children would be a legacy of the colonial period more than the result of disproportionate spending in Kikuyu regions under Kenyatta (Simson & Green 2020; see also Ricart-Huguet 2021); more generally, there is an important effect of intergenerational transmission of educational attainment, as children of parents with higher levels of education are more likely to attain higher levels too (Simson 2021).…”

“…Berman et al 2009; Li 2018; Simson & Green 2020), but also because of the long-term and often persistent benefits that accrue to unfairly favoured ethnic groups. Indeed, unfair advantage with respect to the allocation of educational resources (both in terms of infrastructure and availability of qualified teachers) may lead to substantial differences between different ethnic groups’ returns to education and consequently their future economic opportunities and status in society (Brown 2011; Kramon & Posner 2016; Simson 2021; see also Ricart-Huguet 2021).…”