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Migration Policy Can Boost PISA Results: Findings from a Natural Experiment

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  • Cattaneo, Maria Alejandra

    (Swiss Co-ordination Center for Research in Education)

  • Wolter, Stefan C.

    (University of Bern)

Abstract

Switzerland radically changed its migration policy in the mid-nineties from a "non-qualified only" policy to one that favors the immigration of highly qualified migrants. To analyze the impact of this change on the schooling outcomes of migrants, this paper compares the PISA (OECD Programme for International Student Assessment) results from 2000, which were not yet affected by the change in the migration policy, with the PISA 2009 test. Using a Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition analysis, we find that almost 70% of the 43-point increase (more than one standardized school year) in the PISA scores of first-generation immigrant students in an environment with stagnant Swiss PISA results was due to changes in the individual background characteristics of the new immigrants (direct effect) and improved school composition (lower shares of students who did not speak the testing languages as an indirect effect). The indirect effects also indicate that internationally comparative analyses should more fully consider differences in national migration policies when assessing the success of migrant integration.

Suggested Citation

  • Cattaneo, Maria Alejandra & Wolter, Stefan C., 2012. "Migration Policy Can Boost PISA Results: Findings from a Natural Experiment," IZA Discussion Papers 6300, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp6300
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    Cited by:

    1. Johannes S. Kunz, 2016. "Analyzing Educational Achievement Differences between Second-Generation Immigrants: Comparing Germany and German-Speaking Switzerland," German Economic Review, Verein für Socialpolitik, vol. 17(1), pages 61-91, February.
    2. Sweetman, A. & van Ours, J.C., 2014. "Immigration : What About the Children and Grandchildren?," Other publications TiSEM cc9b5625-5c92-41b6-a1a4-f, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    3. Gvozdeva, Margarita A. (Гвоздева, Маргарита А.) & Kazakova, Maria V. (Казакова, Мария) & Lyubimov, Ivan L. (Любимов, Иван) & Nesterova, Kristina V. (Нестерова, Кристина), 2017. "Immigration, school system and Human Capital [Иммиграция, Школьная Система И Накопление Человеческого Капитала]," Ekonomicheskaya Politika / Economic Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, vol. 1, pages 40-57, February.
    4. Sweetman, A. & van Ours, J.C., 2014. "Immigration : What About the Children and Grandchildren?," Discussion Paper 2014-009, Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research.
    5. Garnett Picot & Feng Hou, 2013. "Why Immigrant Background Matters for University Participation: A Comparison of Switzerland and Canada," International Migration Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(3), pages 612-642, September.
    6. Mérove Gijsberts & Rozemarijn Ploeg, 2016. "School Achievement of Immigrant Children: The Decreasing Influence of Ethnic Concentration," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 17(3), pages 905-927, August.
    7. Debra Shepherd, 2013. "A question of efficiency: decomposing South African reading test scores using PIRLS 2006," Working Papers 20/2013, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    natural experiment; Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition; PISA; migration;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination

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