School tracking in Luxembourg: the longitudinal impact of student characteristics and school composition

Scientific Conference (2022, December 05)

Research question: The current study aimed to investigate the influence of student and school level factors on school tracking in secondary education. We were especially interested in the association ... [more ▼]

Research question: The current study aimed to investigate the influence of student and school level factors on school tracking in secondary education. We were especially interested in the association between student characteristics and school composition in Grade 3 and school track in Grade 9. Data source: Data were collected as part of the Luxembourg school monitoring programme “Épreuves Standardisées” (ÉpStan; Fischbach et al., 2014). The study cohort include all students enrolled in the Luxembourg public education system in Grade 3 in November 2013 combined with data from the same students in Grade 9 in November 2017-2019 for students following advanced or regular educational pathways, completed with data from November 2020 and 2021 for students that repeated once or twice (N≈3600). Theoretical approach: The study draws upon theoretical frameworks and empirical findings (e.g., Boudon, 1974; Bourdieu, 1984), that have demonstrated students´ socio-demographic characteristics are associated with (dis)advantages for specific groups of students in education systems as well as more recent work focusing on school composition (e.g., Baumert et al., 2006), especially as tracked school systems are known to be prone to social segregation (e.g., Hadjar & Gross, 2016). To date, most research on school segregation in tracked education systems such as Luxembourg has focused on individual student´s characteristics. However, with increasing heterogeneity of student cohorts and known differences in educational opportunities related to the social and ethnic composition of the school’s student body (e.g., Thrupp et al., 2002), the current research extents the existing literature by considering both individual (including prior academic achievement and socio-demographic characteristics) and school level factors (mean academic level and percentage of students from lower socio-economic and migration background) in predicting school track placement. Main findings: Results of a multilevel random effect logistic regression analysis in which we estimated marginal effects on the probability to be placed in the highest, middle or lowest track in Luxembourg show that even after controlling for student´s academic achievement, track placement is affected by the gender and socio-economic background of the student, whereby boys and students from low SES families have less chance to be placed in the highest track. The association with socio-economic background is not only visible on the student level but also on school level, whereby students attending primary schools with a higher percentage of low SES families have less chance to be orientated to the higher track compared to the middle track, regardless of the student´ individual academic performance. [less ▲]

The effect of grade retention on reading skills of immigrant children in multilingual elementary school. A longitudinal study.

Presentation (2019, November 06)

In a longitudinal study the effect of grade retention on reading skills of immigrant children in multilingual elementary school was investigated. The study was conducted between 2013 and 2017 and thirty ... [more ▼]

In a longitudinal study the effect of grade retention on reading skills of immigrant children in multilingual elementary school was investigated. The study was conducted between 2013 and 2017 and thirty-four per cent of the sample was lost due to grade retention. These children had been followed from kindergarten to grade 3 of elementary school. To observe differences among promoted and retained students, we assessed them using various language and socioeconomic measures. We also compared a subgroup of promoted students, scoring lower in grade 2 than the mean of retained students in reading comprehension. The current study revealed four main findings. Firstly, there were no significant differences between promoted and retained students in their first language vocabulary (Portuguese). Secondly, there was a significant difference in second and third language vocabularies (Luxembourgish and German) and in German reading tasks (the language of instruction) from kindergarten to grade 2, with promoted students scoring higher than retained students. Thirdly, and most importantly, retained students did not catch up with promoted students in the language of instruction (German) measures even after grade retention, but they did in language of socialisation (Luxembourgish). Fourthly, and in contrast to retained students, the low-achieving promoted students improved significantly in German reading comprehension by grade 3.The last two findings underline that grade retention does not lead to improvement in children’s reading comprehension. As vocabulary is one of the main predictors of reading comprehension, programs that improve poor readers’ vocabulary knowledge may be more efficient than grade retention. The present findings corroborate previous studies reporting that grade retention is not beneficial and that low-achieving students promoted to the next grade show better academic outcomes later than retained students. [less ▲]

Luxembourg: Has inequality grown enough to matter?

in Nolan, Brian; Salverda, Wiemer; Checchi, Daniele (Eds.) et al Changing Inequalities and Societal Impacts in Rich Countries: Thirty Countries' Experiences (2014)

Luxembourg experienced remarkable economic performance and employment growth since the middle of the 1980s. Based on the development of the financial sector, this growth benefited massively from the ... [more ▼]

Luxembourg experienced remarkable economic performance and employment growth since the middle of the 1980s. Based on the development of the financial sector, this growth benefited massively from the contribution of immigrants and cross-border workers to the labour force. High economic growth led to a rapid improvement in the overall living standard of the resident population. During the same period, income inequality increased too, albeit modestly. Even if the country can still be considered a low inequality country by international standards, this trend is a potential source of concern. This chapter analyses the factors that explain the rise in income inequality between 1985 and 2010 and provides a descriptive account of whether this trend has been correlated with a set of social, cultural, and political outcomes. By and large, the positive impact of the improvement of overall living standards seems to have prevailed over the potential detrimental effects of increasing inequality. [less ▲]