Send message to Author

Paper short abstract:

Whether students from lower-ranked household groups (based on household occupation) could access higher-ranked school types and whether access to higher-ranked school types leads to upward occupational mobility for them.

Paper long abstract:

We examine the role of school education in diluting/reproducing the prevalent social hierarchy based on occupational segmentation. Using Young Lives panel data for Andhra Pradesh/Telangana during 2006-2016, we classify households in terms of their occupations. We investigate how different types of school participation for ‘young’ individuals within households improves/limits their chances of upward occupational mobility relative to their household occupation. We classify schools based on their type of management and the course fee and rank them based on students' learning outcomes. We examine (a) whether students from lower-ranked household groups (based on household occupation) could access higher-ranked school types, and (b) if access to higher-ranked school types leads to upward mobility for them. Using a multinomial logistic regression framework, we find that individuals from higher-ranked household types were significantly more likely to attend better-ranked school types, while those from low-ranked households are largely unable to access these schools. Further, we find that those who attended the top-ranked school types improved their likelihood of upward mobility significantly, while those who attended lower-ranked school types witnessed no such improvement. Given the segmented pattern of school accessibility and the corresponding chances of upward mobility, the prospects for upward mobility for individuals from lower-ranked household types who are unable to attend top-ranked school types are limited. If the association between hierarchy of occupations and that of school-types remains persistent, the hierarchical/segmented occupational structure is likely to be reproduced across generations through the channel of school education.