Focus Areas

School Segregation

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School segregation refers to the unequal distribution of students across schools or classes, often based on social, economic, ethnic, or cultural criteria, which leads to inequalities in access to quality education.

Forms of School Segregation

Social segregation: when students are distributed according to the socioeconomic status of their families. For example, children from affluent families end up in certain schools, while those from working-class backgrounds end up in others.

Ethnic or racial segregation: when ethnic groups are overrepresented or underrepresented in certain schools or classes, often linked to immigration or systemic discrimination.

School segregation by academic level or performance: certain schools or classes mainly accept students who are struggling or high achievers, which accentuates the inequality.

Geographical segregation: linked to school zoning and the distribution of populations across the territory.

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Main Cause

School markets (the so-called “school choice”) are directly associated with higher levels of segregation of pupils from different socioeconomic and ethnic backgrounds between schools. When an education system allows selective schools, be they private or public, to choose their pupils, these schools will tend to choose children from advantaged backgrounds (richer and more educated parents), thus perpetuating social inequalities.

Consequences

  • Lowering of overall attainment

  • Reinforcement of educational inequalities

  • Less cultural openness

  • Negative effects on social cohesion

  • Less self-esteem and lower expectations

  • New teachers being assigned classes with more children of disadvantaged background tend to leave the profession in greater numbers

  • Adverse effect on social mobility and the economy

  • Fewer neighborhood schools means less active mobility and more road traffic.

Example campaign against school segregation in Europe. Video by Fundació Bofill.

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Solution: Equity

The OECD points out that, in education, equity means that an education system provides the same learning opportunities to all students:

"Equity does not mean that all students achieve the same educational outcomes, but rather that there is no link between differences in outcomes among students and the background they come from or economic and social factors over which they have no control. In education, equity means that students from different socioeconomic backgrounds achieve similar levels of academic performance and social and emotional well-being, and are equally likely to obtain a postsecondary degree."

The OECD clearly defines the central role that equity plays in education systems:

“Socioeconomic status has a strong impact on student performance, but in more equitable education systems, more disadvantaged students perform well.”

Around the world, disadvantaged children tend to perform less well overall. In an equitable system, such as in Estonia or Finland, this difference in performance is greatly reduced. Conversely, in an inequitable system such as in Quebec, Catalonia, Australia or Hungary, inequalities at the starting line are virtually unchanged at the finish line.

What Our Members Do

Col·lectiu d'Escoles contra la Segregació (Catalonia, Spain)

This coalition of schools and civil society organisations has documented how administrative practices and residential zoning have led to high concentrations of migrant and low-income students in certain public schools, while others remain more privileged. Their advocacy has resulted in policy reforms and greater public awareness of the need for equitable school admissions.

Euskal Eskola Publikoaren Aldeko Plataforma (Basque Country, Spain)

École ensemble (Québec, Canada)

Founded by concerned parents in June 2017, École ensemble’s mission is for Quebec to have an equitable education system by eliminating the school segregation caused by subsidised private and selective public school networks. Read their policy proposal, the Plan for a Common School Network in English or in French.

Key Resources on School Segregation

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    The Effect of School Tracking on Student Achievement and Inequality: A Meta-Analysis (2022)

    Author(s): Éder Terrin and Moris Triventi

    Language(s): English

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    Social Segregation in Schools: Understanding Its Causes and Determining Its Effects (2023)

    Author(s): Pauline Charousset

    Language(s): French

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    PISA 2022 Results (Volume II): Learning During – and From – Disruption (2023)

    Author(s): OECD

    Language(s): English

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    It’s Happening Here Too: School Segregation in Albania and What We’re Doing About It (2015)

    Author(s): Aurela Bozo

    Language(s): French and English

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    School segregation in an urban context: socio-spatial dynamic and educational inequalities (2021)

    Author(s): Isabel Ramos Lobato

    Language(s): English

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