Inequality in higher education: definitions, measurements, inferences

摘要: Inequality in education is primarily analyzed in relation to inequality in society as such, ie inequality in socio-economic background, class or status, as well as inequality in ethnic or racial background. Two main streams of research on this relationship can be identified: one focusing on the effects of the socio-economic background (SEB) on education careers and attainment, and the other focusing on the impact of education on social mobility, ie increasing one’s social status or class.Research on the effects of SEB on education careers and attainment is mostly motivated by the understanding that not all social groups or social classes are equal in this respect, ie that there is stratification in education which is, more or less, and for a variety of reasons, reflecting the stratification in society. Such studies may be, in broad terms, based on quantitative analysis of large samples and include statistical modeling, sometimes for …