Trend Persistent educational inequality and segregation

Summary

The report finds that inequality in Dutch education is stubborn. Pupils from families with theoretical education or higher incomes reach a higher level of schooling on average, whereas children from lower socio-economic groups often leave with a diploma at a practical level, and a sizeable share of them have a migration background. Crises and shocks such as the coronavirus pandemic can widen this gap. Segregation between groups of pupils also persists, so that, especially in the big cities, children from different backgrounds meet less and less, with consequences for equal opportunity and social cohesion. Children from low-income families and with a migration background take part in early childhood education less often, which can create differences in school skills and prospects from a young age.