沿岸地域における学歴主義と教育達成

利口, 家もたず, 達者, 家もたす

抄録

The purpose of this paper is to show accumulativeness and complexity in causes of regional inequality in educational attainment. Although numbers of studies have been made on inequality in educational attainment, little is known about accumulativeness and complexity in causes of inequality. The main reason is that many of these studies neglect the effects of geographical determinants, regional history and regional culture on education. To solve this problem we examine the formation processes of parents' educational hopes for children and students' educational aspirations in the Sendai area and Kesennuma city, considering these factors.
We conducted surveys on students at 13 high schools and their parents in the Sendai area (including Sendai, Tagajou and Natori City) in 1987 and on students at 10 high schools and their parents in three other cities in Miyagi Prefecture (Shiroishi, Furukawa and Kesennuma City) in 1988. The results may be summarized as follows:(1) in comparison with the Sendai area, parents' status (according to educational and occupational status) is lower in Kesennuma city;(2) in general, higher parental status promotes their educational hopes for children, but this effect is weaker in Kesennuma city.
We used historical and statistical materials and conducted hearing from informants to clarify cultural and historical backgrounds to these results. Kessennuma is located on the south coast of the Tohoku area, and the main industries are fishing and marine product-processing, so before World War 2, educational credentialism permeated later in Kessennuma. Because educational attainment is not a beneficial strategy in a coastal area, parents attach greater importance to practical science. On the other hand, regional culture may cause changes in the meaning of modern education. We conclude that interaction between school education and regional society is needed to elucidate the social function of education.