University applications drop from schools in poor areas
September 16, 2009
Louise Brown
EDUCATION REPORTER
Ontario teens at schools in poor neighbourhoods are less likely to apply to university than those from schools in richer areas, new research shows – and the gap is widening, particularly in pricey programs like Commerce.
But the income gap is slightly smaller at Catholic schools, the study shows, and schools with more students of East- Asian background.
"If there are Einsteins living in low-income neighbourhoods, they should have as much opportunity to go to university as anywhere else – so we should be looking for ways to ensure all students get the best opportunity possible," said McMaster economics professor Abigail Payne, who co-authored the report released today by the Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario.
Tracking applications to university in Ontario from 1995 to 2005, the report found that schools in neighbourhoods where families earn less than $54,000 a year are less likely to apply to university than those where household income tops $75,000, with little change over the decade.
But students at Catholic schools in poor areas are 5 per cent more likely to seek entry to a university than their peers at public high schools, said Payne.
"Are the students attending Catholic high schools by nature different, by having made the choice? Is that a selection process that co-relates with families with more resources, more motivation, more ability? Or are Catholic schools providing something different, maybe the way they teach?" said Payne. "We don't know."
She prepared the report "University Participation and Income Differences" with colleagues Leslie Robb and Martin Dooley for the council, which Queen's Park set up as a research and advisory body.
thestar.com