School Wellbeing of Migrant Children in Urban China: Role of Migrant
Characteristics and Intrapersonal Variables
Issue
China’s rapid economic transition in recent history from a primarily agrarian
society with a planned economy to a market economy has relaxed a massive flow of
capital, resources and labor internally. There has emerged a voluntary migration of
farmers in rural part of China to large urban cities and coastal export processing
centers in search of job opportunities and better living conditions. As the wave of
migration continues to expand, the impact of migrants will inevitably transform
China’s educational and labor landscape in the coming decade.
Although children of migrant workers have been increasingly visible in urban
settings, such as schools and communities, their school life and achievement have
been largely ignored. In addition, one of the most striking obstacles for school aged
migrant children is due to household registration system (“hukou”) that denials equal
access to schooling. The hukou system is legal residential proof that is divided into
urban and rural categories. Migrant children who do not have urban household status
are not eligible for state schools. Consequently the vast majority of them are enrolled
in relatively lower quality public schools or in private-run migrant schools.
Migrant children’s school wellbeing is of particular importance for both
theoretical and practical reasons. Children spend most of their daytime in school
learning and interacting with teachers and peers; healthy school environments
promote active learning, creativity, as well as socio-cultural adaptation. They bridge
to students’ home communities and foster democratic involvement in decision making
in a globalized world. Further migrant children, who comprise a large and growing
subset of urban population, are tomorrow’s citizens, parents, and workers. Their
developmental trajectories, which not only have a causal influence on their own
upward mobility, but are also foundations for a skilled workforce, a responsible
citizenship, and a flourishing economy. Although this study is centered on migrant
children in urban China, it may also be relevant for other countries undergoing
large-scale economic change that fosters extensive internal migration. It is thus
critical to address the school wellbeing of migrant children in urban contexts.
Level of the Research
Theoretical Foundation
Although previous literature has provided preliminary evidence for linking the
migrant status to school wellbeing (Wong et al., 2009; Wu, 2008; Xie & Pan, 2007),
scholars have yet to put forward a conceptual model that maps the qualitative and
quantitative aspects of migrant experience to school adjustment and performances of
Chinese migrant children.
Social ecological and developmental theories posit that human lives carry the
imprint
of
their
social
experiences
(Brofenbrenner,1978;1986).
In
a
developmental-ecological perspective, Baker et al., (2003) argue that one’s
psychosocial adjustment in school is shaped by various ecological factors. An
individual’s happiness and achievement in school depends on how one’s
developmental needs and potentials are fulfilled or stretched by school structures,
practices, and recourses. In predicting school wellbeing, a range of environmental
variables has been documented in earlier research including school climate, teacher
support, peer relationship, and family contexts as well as individual characteristics
including gender, socioeconomic status. In addition, the cognitive mediation model
shows that intrapersonal variables such as self-esteem and hope have mediating
effects on the relationship between environmental factors and school wellbeing (Ash
& Huebner, 2001, Huebner et al., 2001).
This study aims to empirically test a conceptual model outlining migrant
characteristics variables and intrapersonal mediators to school wellbeing of Chinese
migrant children (Figure 1). This model taps in a wide range of migrant characteristics
predictors (four degrees of acculturative attitudes, perceived economic stress,
relationships with parents, teachers and friends) in predicting school wellbeing (i.e.
school satisfaction and grades) of migrant children. In addition, positive acculturative
attitudes, low economic stress, and positive relationships with family, peers and
friends improve school happiness and grades through mediating factors of hope and
self-esteem. Thus students’ school wellbeing is depended on their psychological state
and emotions, which are generated through interactions in various social settings.
Figure1
Methodology
A total of 301 4th to 9th grade migrant students filled up the pencil and paper
survey questionnaires in Wenzhou, Zhejiang. In addition to demographic information
of age, gender, ethnic group, parental educational levels and income, survey also
measured school satisfaction (Multidimensional Life Satisfaction Scale for Children;
Huebner, 1994), school grades, acculturation scale for Chinese migrant children
(self-administered instrument), economic stress (Economic Stress Scale; Shek, 2003),
relationship with family (Family Environment Scale; Moos & Moos, 1986),
relationship with teachers (Chinese School Support Scale; Sun, 2005), relationship
with peers (Perceived Social Support from friends; Procidano & Heller, 1983), hope
(Children’s Hope Scale; Synder et al., 1997), and self-esteem (Rosenberg Self Esteem
Scale, Rosenberg; 1965). Two qualitative cases of semi-structured in-depth interviews
were carried out to further explore the issue.
Main Results
Building upon the ecological developmental perspective (Baker, 2003), this study
investigated the effect of migrant characteristics variables and intrapersonal variables
on school experience of Chinese migrant children. Main quantitative results
highlighted the significance of positive acculturative attitudes in improving students’
school satisfaction and academic achievement. Among the relationship factors, the
support from family was found to be the strongest determinant of students’ academic
performance, while positive bonds with teachers served as the strongest predictor of
school satisfaction. Hope was a significant mediator in accounting for the association
between migrant characteristics and school experience. This mediating effect was
found to be stronger among girls than among boys―which may imply that school
experiences of female migrant students are more affected by feelings and perceptions
generated from migrant experience. Results from two qualitative cases served to
illustrate, extend, and explain the quantitative results.