CHILDREN'S EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

Does Family Structure Children's Educational Attainment?

Does Family Structure Children's Educational Attainment?

Introduction

A growing number of people spend at least a portion of their childhood or adolescence in families not consisting of married biological-parents (intact families). The increase of single-parent, stepparent, and cohabiting-parent households raises questions about how divorce, remarriage, and non-marital unions influence children's well-being. The common observation is that individuals who live in intact families continuously throughout childhood and adolescence have better outcomes on numerous indicators, such as emotional well-being, psychosocial adjustment, and educational attainment (Magnuson and Berger 2009, p.575).

While many of the problems that associate with family transitions are short-term, the experience of living without married biological-parents has long-term effects. Among other consequences, the literature demonstrates that living in single-parent families, stepfamilies, or other non-conventional households has adverse effects on socioeconomic trajectories across the life course and also contributes to the reproduction of poverty (McLanahan 2005, p.875).

Research problem

This study focuses on the relationship between family structure and educational outcomes. The majority of the research on this topic compares intact families to single-parent and stepfamilies. The consistent finding is that individuals from fragile families have lower high school graduation rates and fewer years of schooling. The key antecedents of these lower levels of educational attainment include lower academic performance and school engagement. Moreover, individuals from stepfamilies are similar to those from single-parent families in their educational outcomes, and this implies that the “crucial distinction” is between intact families and other living arrangements. Though there is debate about what connects family structure to educational outcomes, the predominant explanations focus on socioeconomic and parental resources.

Research question

Does family structure children's educational attainment?

Discussion

The number of children and children's living in non-conventional households has risen over the past several decades, but intact families remain predominant in UK (Milan, Keown, and Urquijo 2011, p3). Our usage of the term intact families refers to families consisting of married biological-parents. In this study, our interest is directed at how children's from fragile families compare to those from intact families. We do not address differences between children's from different types of fragile families, such as comparisons of single-parent and stepfamilies. This is because the gaps in well-being between these children's are low in comparison to the gaps between intact and fragile families (Brown 2010, p.1059).

Our definition of fragile families includes single-5 parent, step-parent, cohabiting-parent, and other non-conventional living arrangements. These types of families are considered to be “fragile” because of the risk factors that associate with non-marital child-rearing and reconstituted families (Amato 2007, p327). In comparison to intact families, individuals from fragile families encounter multiple disadvantages throughout childhood and adolescence, such as a higher risk of low-income, family dysfunction and conflict, and family instability (McLanahan 2005, p.875).

Our analytical focus is on the relationship between family structure and university enrollment and completion. Using children's from intact families as the reference group, the objective is to examine how these outcomes differ for children's from fragile families. Family structure and family transitions can be interrelated, such ...