Commuting to segregation. The role of pupil commuting in a Hungarian city: between school segregation and inequality

Zolnay, János (2018) Commuting to segregation. The role of pupil commuting in a Hungarian city: between school segregation and inequality. SZOCIOLÓGIAI SZEMLE, 28 (4). pp. 133-151. ISSN 1216-2051

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Abstract

The paper is written to foster understanding of the function of primary school pupils’ high commuting rate in Hungary’s towns and cities and its role in the process of school choice. Based on two studies and on data collection covering all primary school pupils in the city of Pecs, I analyzed the pattern, direction and success rate of pupils’ efforts to find higher quality schools than their district schools. The aim of the study was to unpack the “commuting games” of the primary schools. Results indicate that, in contrast to national trends, the commuting rate of low-status and Roma primary school pupils is also very high within the city. However, while most of the commuting pupils have managed to enrol in higher quality schools than the ones in the catchment area of their homes, the majority of low-status and Roma commuters appear to be attending lower quality schools than those close to their homes, because prestigious schools informally deter them. My findings challenge the literature which claims that the selection mechanisms of public education are predominantly regulated by the mutual choices of prestigious schools and high-status pupils. Schools and their local or central maintenence agents are unable to control the processes against the background of a centralized system.

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