Children's family and school capital: effects on mathematics achievement in Canada

Abstract

Using a broad theoretical framework and a nation-wide dataset, this study integrates several perspectives from prior research on both education and the family to produce a comprehensive picture of children's math achievement in Canada. To carry out this research, data from the third cycle of the National Longitudinal Survey of Children and Youth (NLSCY) was accessed from the Statistics Canada Prairie Regional Research Data Centre. Mathematics scores of children in grades 2 to 6 were regressed on variables that test the impact of financial capital (income resources), human capital (educational resources), and social capital (relationship resources) of both families and schools . In addition to highlighting the relative importance of both family and school resources independently, this study also explores the ways in which individual, family, and school characteristics additively affect educational achievement, as well as interact to affect achievement.