| Author: | Ding, Qifan |
| Title: | Capital and habitus in shaping the educational expectation of migrant children : --a mixed-methods research in Shanghai |
| Advisors: | Wu, Qiaobing (APSS) |
| Degree: | Ph.D. |
| Year: | 2022 |
| Subject: | Children of internal migrants -- Education -- China Student aspirations -- China Education and state -- China Hong Kong Polytechnic University -- Dissertations |
| Department: | Department of Applied Social Sciences |
| Pages: | x, 233 pages : color illustrations |
| Language: | English |
| Abstract: | The barrier for Chinese migrant children to receive compulsory education in megacities has been gradually solved in recent years. The demand for high school education is now the bottom line for most of migrant children. Unlike compulsory education, high school education in China manifests a convergence process that can profoundly affect students' future decisions. While the schooling issues of migrant children have been analysed extensively, less is investigated about how their educational expectations are influenced and shaped in certain policy contexts. This study aims to identify how various dimensions of economic, cultural and social capital embedded in the family, school and peer contexts influence the educational expectation of Chinese migrant children, taking into account the varying policy contexts of senior high school entrance examination across different cities and the role of habitus. Referring to Bourdieu's theory of practice and Coleman's social capital theory, this research comprised three interrelated studies. It adopted a mixed-methods approach, using the mixed sequential dominant status design: QUAN → qual. The quantitative studies used data from the China Education Panel Survey (CEPS) and employed structural equation modelling to test the direct and mediating effects of capitals as well as the moderating effect of policy contexts. The follow-up qualitative research was a case study conducted in Shanghai. Participant observation and semi-structured interviews were used as the main research method for data collection. The first study investigated how economic, cultural and social capital affect the educational expectation of migrant children. The study results showed that all dimensions of capital significantly influenced the educational expectation of migrant children except family social capital. The effect of objectified cultural capital appeared to be the most predominant factor. Surprisingly, against the original hypothesis, economic capital and embodied cultural capital negatively influenced educational expectations. The second study examined whether the strictness of the senior high school education examination policy for Chinese migrant children moderated the effects of economic, cultural and social capital on their educational expectations in urban China. The study results showed that only the loose senior high school entrance examination policy level could affect the relationship between economic capital and educational expectations of migrant children. When the family's economic conditions were not ideal, education was more likely to be the only means to distinguish the students in the future. The study identified no moderating effects of the strictness of the policy level on the associations between cultural and social capital and migrant children's educational expectation. The third study investigated how familial and institutional habitus shaped the educational expectation of Chinese migrant children, and how do Chinese migrant children responded to a mismatch of familial and institutional habitus with their educational expectations. Findings demonstrated that migrant students from local classes showed a degree of integration in Shanghai and formed a high educational expectation under the context of strict policy. Nevertheless, students from migrant children's classes could develop a culture of 'hun' to resist their parents and give up themselves because of unfair treatments. Some migrant children also replicated their family member's perspectives and practice, lowering their expectations due to the policy restriction and the scarce existing resources. The mismatch of institutional habitus and familial habitus rendered migrant children powerless or even hopeless to form high educational expectations. This dissertation has important theoretical, practical and policy implications. In terms of theoretical implications, this research advances Bourdieu's theory of practice and Coleman's social capital theory by incorporating all dimensions of capital, habitus and field from a holistic perspective. It also advances the theory by testing its validity with a disadvantaged group in a non-western socio-cultural context. It extends the knowledge and understanding of how various dimensions of capital and habitus operate in the Chinese context. In terms of practical implications, this dissertation suggests that the building of cultural and social capital could expand strategies or approaches in the social or schooling programmes. Schools could provide more opportunities for migrant children to fulfil their aspiration, such as extracurricular classes or additional formal courses for migrant children. Moreover, schools could design programmes to promote migrant children's interaction with their parents or local students. With regard to the policy aspect, the qualified secondary vocational schools should provide more places and majors for migrant children to achieve better possible post-compulsory education. The study also suggests creating a social mechanism whereby migrant children can use their examination scores to exchange for the points of residence permit, which may potentially enhance their chance of continuing education in the city. Moreover, policymakers should provide efficient support to help migrant children seek various educational opportunities, such as introducing the latest entrance examination policy and providing feasible guidance on further education. |
| Rights: | All rights reserved |
| Access: | open access |
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