Around the world, and in China specifically, a significant body of research has emerged to investigate factors that hinder or promote enrollment and attainment in school. Surprisingly little attention has been paid to whether and how school environments faced by children among their classmates and teachers might condition their subsequent educational trajectories. This work uses a longitudinal survey of children in rural northwest China who were aged 9 to 12 in 2000, the year of the first survey wave, and aged 13 to 16 when re-interviewed in 2004 to investigate whether school social environment matters for subsequent enrollment.
Jennifer Adams is assistant professor of social science, policy, and educational practice at the Stanford University School of Education. Adams studies schooling and social welfare in China. Her current research focuses on the community and school contexts in which children learn and develop in China's rural areas. Her work in China has shown the persistent, and even rising, impact of community resources on children's educational outcomes. In addition to her experience as a researcher in China, Adams also has five years of experience teaching primary school in Chinese-speaking communities.