Wider Benefits of Learning Research Report No.1 0
A Model of the Inter-generational
Transmission of Educational
Success
The inter-generational transmission of educational success is a key
driver of the persistence of social class differences and a barrier
to equality of opportunity. This report provides a review of the
role of parental education in this process. We examine theory and
evidence on the key factors that impact on children’s attainment
and assess the ways in which education alters the related dynamic
processes.
To structure our presentation of the theory and evidence we draw
on the multi-level ecological model of developmental psychology.
This provides a framework for presenting ideas not just from
psychology but also from economics and other social sciences. It
also enables a focus on the interaction between factors as well as
other contexts beside the family, such as schools, pre-schools and
neighbourhoods.
Dr Leon Feinstein is the Research Director for the Centre for
Research on the Wider Benefits of Learning. Kathryn Duckworth
and Dr Ricardo Sabates are Research Officers in the Centre.
ISBN 0-9547871-0-2