Journal Article

Socio-economic status, cultural diversity and the aspirations of secondary students in the Western Suburbs of Melbourne, Australia

Doughney, James, Bowden, Mark P.

2010

Overview

Using data from a recent survey of Australian secondary students, we find that those from higher socio-economic backgrounds are more likely to aspire to attend university. The same can be said for students who do not speak English at home. We find that students with an ethnic minority background are more likely to perceive higher levels of support from parents. However, we find that all students believe they receive encouragement from their parents to do well at school (rather than discouragement or disinterest), and that there is little difference in the level of importance placed on the views of parents between students from English and non-English speaking background. While interest in university education is strong across all socio-economic groups, particularly for students who do not speak English at home, there is a considerable gap between aspirations and enrolment levels. We suggest that this 'aspirations gap' is larger for students from low socio-economic backgrounds. This analysis also supports growing evidence that the postcode methodology for allocating socio-economic status to individuals is unreliable. (HRK / Abstract übernommen).

• Publisher: Springer,Springer Netherlands,Springer Nature B.V
• Subject: Academic achievement / Academic Aspiration / Access to education / Aspiration / Aspirations / Aspirations Online survey / Ausland / Australia / Australien / Background / College students / Colleges and universities / Cultural differences / Cultural identity / Cultural Pluralism / Differences / Economic status / Education / Educational attainment / Educational enrolment / Educational equalization / English / English (Second Language) / English language / Enrolment / Equal education / Ethnic groups / Ethnic origins / Ethnicity / Foreign Countries / High school students / Higher Education / Hochschule / Inequality / Job Skills / Lehre / Melbourne / Melbourne, Australia / Minorities / Minority groups / Multiculturalism / Multiculturalism & pluralism / Non English Speaking / Non English speaking background / Non English speaking students / Non-English speakers / Outcomes of Education / Parent Aspiration / Parent Attitudes / Parent Child Relationship / Parent-child relations / Parents / Parents & parenting / Postsecondary education / Regional characteristics / School surveys / Schools / Second Language Learning / Secondary education / Secondary School Students / Secondary schools / Secondary students / Socioeconomic Background / Socioeconomic factors / Socioeconomic status / Socioeconomics / Statistics / Student / Student attitudes / Student Surveys / Students / Studium / Suburban areas / Surveys / Tertiary education / Universities / University bound students / Urban sociology / Victoria / Vocational education and training