Does the immigrant background affect student achievement? cross-country comparisons of Pisa scores

Abstract

The paper aims to analyze the learning differentials between natives and
students with an immigrant background. Using econometric methods, we compare
countries with different migration histories and the gap between immigrant and
native students in other European countries. Through the analysis of the reading
scores (OECD PISA 2018 tests), we deepen the gap between immigrants and
native students. To investigate this gap, our study analyzes the role played by
different variables such as gender, social and economic background, motivational
characteristics, and school context to understand how they influence the
educational gap between students with an immigrant background and natives. We
find that the most important variables that contribute to the gap are the school’s and
family’s socio-economic index and the language spoken at home.