Socijalno podrijetlo i obrazovne nejednakosti: istraživanje na primjeru osječkih studenata i srednjoškolaca
Social Origin and Educational Inequalities: A Study on the Example of Students and Secondary School Pupils in Osijek

Summary/Abstract: The authors start with the assumption that education is becoming increasingly important in the modern, information society, not only in creating societal wealth, but in relation to social inequalities as well. Therefore, the equality of educational opportunities represents an important part of a just, meritocratic society, which implies the decreasing importance of social origin on educational outcomes. In this article, the authors further present the results of empirical research on a sample of 400 secondary school and university students in Osijek, with the principal aim of identifying the scale of educational inequalities. In the first part of the analysis, it was established that the university students come from better educated families, compared to the general population. Further results showed that the educational aspirations of secondary school students are significantly correlated with the educational level of their parents, and that this influence is mediated through the choice of the particular type of secondary school (i. e. gymnasium). Both results indicate the existence of educational inequalities i.e. undermining the principle of the equality of educational opportunities, but more precise identification of their scale and causes calls for wider research.

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