General objectives

The Policy Research Centre for “study and school careers” aims to construct knowledge about school careers through education into the labour market, and to study the impact and effectiveness of policy measures and educational innovations on these transitions.  This implies the collection of longitudinal data as well as analyses which are relevant for policy - more specifically, in two areas:

• school careers of pupils and students;
• transition from school to work (including learning and work pathways until the age of 35)

In the period 2007-2011, the Research Policy Centre concentrates on the following priorities:

1. updating and completing longitudinal databases in each of both research areas: school careers in primary education (SiBO, involving an intensive monitoring of a cohort of 6000 children) and the transition from school to work (SONAR, with repeated interviews of 3 successive cohorts of school-leavers);
   
   
2. several analyses of school and study careers through the educational system as a whole, from the start of preschool education until the end of tertiary education, with specific attention being devoted to early school-leavers;
   
   
3. several analyses of transition pathways from school to work, including educa­tional and work careers of young adults.

Explanatory analyses focus in particular on (a) the influence of the social context and the school environment, and (b) unequal opportunities, with the aim of producing research-based policy advice.

The Policy Research Centre builds on a wide variety of skills and competences, a multiplicity of methods and techniques and a diversity of perspectives from which the data are analysed.

Main achievements in 2010

Research area 1: study and school careers

• continuation of the data collection for the SiBO dataset (transition from primary to secondary school and first orientation at secondary level, accounting also for cases of grade repetition and pupils who had been referred to special education). The panel includes study career data, cognitive tests, school observations and surveys among teachers and school principals.
• A test battery has been administered to students in the B-stream (students accessing secondary education without primary school qualification), in the context of a student monitoring system in the first two grades of secondary education (b-stream).
• Several reports had already been produced in the past on the basis of linked administrative datasets, thus allowing for a longitudinal study of population-wide cohorts throughout their school careers. These analyses have been further updated (up to school year 2008-2009) and extended. A detailed picture has been sketched of trends in early school leaving by birth cohort and by calendar year. It has been demonstrated that, contrary to official data based on the LFS sample survey, the problem of unqualified school leaving is increasing rather than decreasing.
  Specific attention has been devoted also to alternative routes towards qualification (apprenticeship, special education, second chance education for adults and part-time vocational education).
• The effects of grade repetition (in the first year of primary school) on learning curves and on the socio-emotional development of children has been examined, both in the short and long run. Whereas short-term cognitive effects appear to be slightly positive, they turn out negative in the longer run. Socio-emotional effects appear to be negative.
• In the context of a specific research line on educational inequalities, our research has focussed on three aspects:
• Predictive power of early signals of disadvantage: different clusters of disadvantaged pupils have been identified, based on an extended version of Bourdieu’s concepts of economic, social and cultural capital. Among other things, a cluster has been identified which appears to suffer from cultural and pedagogical deprivation without necessarily being socio-economically disadvantaged. Further research has revealed that this cultural and pedagogical deprivation indicators predict specific risks in terms of school achievement and, hence, it may be desirable to include additional indicators in defining the target groups of educational priority policies.
• Qualitative analysis of the implementation of the Equal Educational Opportunity (EEO) Act within schools and classes. Overall, the law has been welcomed and has triggered fresh commitment on the part of schools and teachers. However, the expected ‘continuous  reflection’ of teachers on their professional practice in relation to equal opportunities appears to be missing. In practice, ‘EEO teachers’ are young and lack experience and authority, instead of being the most experienced and specialised teachers.
• Two quasi-experimental studies of the cognitive and socio-emotional effects of EEO funding on students point to a positive effect (though not for all subjects and subgroups of students).
• Specific surveys have been carried out to monitor the implementation of the new law on the ‘maximum school bill’ – more precisely, by monitoring the volume of extra-curricular activities.
• An indicator of social and ethnic segregation has been developed in 2009. An update on more recent data is currently being carried out, thus allowing for a monitoring of trends in (de)segregation.

Research Area 2: school-to-work transition

• The latest wave of the SONAR database (follow-up survey of the 1980 birth cohort) has been cleaned and coded. A first analysis has been carried out of the ease of transition and quality characteristics of the jobs filled by school leavers.
• The Flemish Adult Education Survey has been analysed, using a life-cycle model of needs, motives and obstacles as a general framework. This leads to specific points of attention for policies to promote lifelong learning, differentiating between target groups and age groups.
• Following up on the study of school-to-work transitions of immigrant youths in previous years, research in 2010 has concentrated on young women of Moroccan and Turkish origin. In-depth interviews revealed the experiences and perceptions of those women, linking their previous school careers with gender roles and early work (or unemployment) careers.
• Still in the context of the gender theme of the research track on social inequality in the school-to-work transition, the issue of time pressure and the reconciliation of work and family responsibilities was analyzed, including its determinants and its effects on mobility among young workers (ages 26 and 29). The findings were compared with similar research among more mature adults.
• An earlier report on social differences in the career orientation following  a ‘b-certificate’ in Flemish secondary education was supplemented with an international comparative survey of the literature on social differences in educational choice in general.
• In the context of the research track on lifelong learning patterns of early school leavers, a theoretical model was developed which links human capital development with social capital. The aim is to understand the complex interplay between social background and post-school learning behaviour. The model will be empirically tested on the SONAR dataset in 2011.
• The next research track deals with matching problems in school-to-work transitions. Research in 2010 focussed on (a) the analysis of the determinants of horizontal mismatch (maladjustment between job contents and the content of qualifications), and (b) the persistence of mismatch in the Flemish labour market. Persistence appears to be a significant problem, mainly as concerns horizontal mismatch; it differs also by gender, ethnic background and level of education (more problematic among men, immigrants and low-educated school leavers or general education graduates).

Outputs

• 23 research reports have been produced (partly published in the Spring of 2011) and an increasing flow of papers were presented on national and international fora, some of which are being published in international journals (a list is available on the website).
• a continuously updated website containing external as well as internal information pages;
• a three-monthly e-newsletter;
• a research seminar (with 100 participants) to advertise the external use of our SiBO and SONAR datasets. Several examples of recent research by non-SSL teams were presented and the strengths and limitations of both datasets were discussed.
• Apart from the studies mentioned above, the Policy Research Centre also carries out short-term ad hoc assignments from the Flemish Government, responds to ad hoc questions, and disseminates information to the general public.

International Publications

2011

Anumendem, D. N., De Fraine, B., Onghena, P. & Van Damme, J. (2011). ‘Growth in Reading Comprehension and Mathematics Achievement in Primary School: A Bivariate Transition Multilevel Growth Curve Model Approach.’  In: School Effectiveness and School Improvement. (submitted)

Boonen, T., Van Damme, J. & Onghena, P. (2011). Teacher Effects on Student Learning in First Grade: Which Aspects Matter Most? In: School Effectiveness and School Improvement. (submitted)

de Bilde, J., De Fraine, B., & Van Damme, J. (2011). The impact of alternative education on children’s early non-cognitive development. In: School Effectiveness and School Improvement. (submitted)

Ignace Glorieux, Ilse Laurijssen & Yolis Van Dorsselaer (2011): Occupational mobility of non-native and native men and women in the first years of their career in Flanders, Belgium. Journal of International Migration and Integration / Revue de l'integration et de la migration internationale. (submitted)

Goos, M., Van Damme, J., Onghena, P., Petry, K. (2011). 'First-grade retention: Effects on children’s actual and perceived performance throughout elementary education'. Spring Conference of the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness (SREE), 4, 3-5 March 2011.

Laurijssen, Ilse & Ignace Glorieux (2011): The reconciliation of work and family: A longitudinal analysis of the impact of part-time work on the experience of time pressure. Social Indicators Research. (submitted)

Speybroeck, S., Kuppens, S., Van Damme, J., & Van Petegem, P. (2011). Teachers’ expectations in kindergarten. (Unpublished manuscript).

Van Damme, J., de Bilde, J., De Fraine, B. (2011). ‘Evaluating the effectiveness of alternative schools compared to traditional schools: Differences in children’s well-being and motivation’. ICSEI International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement, 24, 4-7 January 2011.

Verhaeghe, J., Van Damme, J., Knipprath, H. (2011). 'Value added of primary schools with high proportions of minority students: a longitudinal study'. ICSEI International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement, 24, 4-7 January 2011.

2010

Boonen, T., Van Damme, J., Onghena, P. (2010). 'Teacher effects on student learning gains in first grade: Which aspects matter most?'. International Congress for School Effectiveness and Improvement, 23, 5-8 January 2010.

Chen Zhipeng, Nicaise Ides, Equal opportunities in formal versus non-formal adult education: an empirical analysis of participation patterns in Belgium. LLL2010 Working Paper, Leuven: HIVA-KU Leuven, 2010, 30p

Cherchye L., De Witte K., Ooghe E., Nicaise I., ‘Efficiency and equity in private and public education: a non-parametric comparison’, European Journal of Operational Research, 2010 (202), p. 563-573.

de Bilde, J., De Fraine, B., Van Damme, J. (2010). 'Evaluating the effectiveness of alternative schools compared to traditional schools: Differences in children's well-being and motivation'. EARLI SIG Educational Effectiveness, Second Meeting, 25-27 August 2010.

de Bilde, J., De Fraine, B., Van Damme, J. (2010). 'Waldorf and Freinet schools compared to traditional schools: Differences in children's well-being and self-regulated functioning from kindergarten until third grade'. In: 2010 Annual Meeting Program: Understanding Complex Ecologies: American Educational Research Association (AERA) Annual Meeting, 2010, 30 April -4 May 2010 -(pp.334-334).

de Bilde, J., Goos, M., De Fraine, B., & Van Damme, J. (2010). Supporting autonomy in kindergarten: The moderating role of early risk indicators. In: School Effectiveness and School Improvement. (submitted)

Defloor B, Van Ootegem L., V E. (2010), “A distance function approach to school-leavers’ efficiency in the school-to-work transition” Ghent University FEB Working Paper, nr. 10/682, 27 p.

De Fraine, B., de Bilde, J., Van Damme, J. (2010). 'Offering an autonomy-supportive environment in kindergarten: Equally effective for all children'. International Self-Determination Theory Conference, 4, 13-16 May 2010.

Demeuse M., Friant N., Nicaise I., Les politiques d'éducation prioritaire: donner plus à ceux qui ont moins, in: Nicaise I., Desmedt E., Demeuse m; (eds.), Une école réellement juste pour tous! Seize pistes de réforme et d'action, Mechelen: Plantyn, 2010, p.387-419.

Dumay, X., Van Damme, J. & Boonen, T. (2010). ‘How school leadership may impact on student learning?’ Biannual Meeting of the Special Interest Group 18 of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, 2, 25-27 August 2010.

Dumay, X., Anumendem, D.N., & De Fraine, B. (2010). ‘Modelling the impact of school processes change on student achievement growth.’ Biannual Meeting of the Special Interest Group 18 of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, 2, 25-27 August 2010.

Dumay, X., Boonen, T. & Van Damme, J. (2010). ‘The multilevel impact of organizational variables on student achievement: Cognitive and motivational pathways’. (Working paper). Louvain-la-Neuve, Leuven, UCL, KULeuven.

Duquet, Nils, Ignace Glorieux, Ilse Laurijssen & Yolis Van Dorsselaer (2010): An Unfinished Job? The Effect of Subject Choice and Family Formation Processes on Labor Market Outcomes of Young Men and Women. Journal of Education and Work, 23, 4: 319-338.

Goos, M., Van Damme, J., Onghena, P., Petry, K. (2010). 'First-Grade Retention: Effects on Children’s Psycho-Social Growth throughout Elementary Education'. Biannual Meeting of the Special Interest Group 18 of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, 2, 25-27 August 2010.

Goos, M., Van Damme, J., Onghena, P., Petry, K. (2010). 'Less is more? An application of propensity score stratification to first-grade retention'. Annual meeting of the Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness (SREE), 3, 4-6 March 2010.

Koelet, Suzana, Helga de Valck, Ignace Glorieux, Ilse Laurijssen (2010): The timing of family commitments in the early working career: work-family trajectories of young women and men in Flanders. Paper presented at the second “Equal is not enough” Conference “Challenging differences and inequalities in contemporary societies”, Antwerp, 1-3 December 2010.

Laurijssen, Ilse & Ignace Glorieux (2010): The reconciliation of work and family. A longitudinal analysis of the impact of part-time work on the experience of time pressure. Paper presented at the second “Equal is not enough” Conference “Challenging differences and inequalities in contemporary societies”, Antwerp, 1-3 December 2010.

Laurijssen, Ilse & Ignace Glorieux (2010): Career Trajectories for Women After Childbirth: Job Quality and Work-Family Balance. European Sociological Review. (submitted)

Speybroeck, S., Kuppens, S., Van Damme, J. (2010). 'The overestimated effect of teachers’ expectations'. Biennual Meeting of the Special Interest Group 18 of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, 2, 25-27 August 2010.

Van Landeghem, G. (2010). ‘Centering decisions and equivalence in multilevel regresssion: A re-examination of the issue’. Biennual Meeting of the Special Interest Group 18 of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, 2, 25-27 August 2010.

Verachtert, P., De Fraine, B., Onghena, P., Ghesquière, P. (2010). 'Season of birth and school success in the early years of primary education' - Oxford Review of Education, Routledge Journals, Taylor & Francis, 36(3) pp.285-306.

Verhaeghe, J., Van Damme, J., Knipprath, H. (2010). 'Differences in value added between primary schools with high proportions of minority students: a longitudinal study'. Biennual Meeting of the Special Interest Group 18 of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction, 2, 25-27 August 2010.

Verhaest, D. and E. Omey, 2010, "The measurement and determinants of skill acquisition in young workers’ first job", Economic and Industrial Democracy, 31(1), 116-149.