School Enrollment of Stay Children, Migrant Children and Other Children with A Rural Registration: An Analysis of China's 2000 Census.

Large -scale labor migration in the past two decades in China has reshaped family structure of migrants, generating numerous stay children (i.e., children who are left behind) and migrant children. Stay children and some migrant children live in nontraditional households without parental immediate care and guidance in daily life and schooling. This would have implications for their education. Drawing on the 2000 Census data, this paper explores the patterns, characteristics and determinants of school enrollment of stay, migrant, and other children (whose parents do not migrate) ages 11-14 with a rural hukou (registration). Analytical results suggest that, first, stay children have a higher likelihood of school enrollment than migrant children and other children, but such effect varies by whom the children stay with: those staying with the mother have the best education opportunity. Second, migrant children have a lower chance of enrollment, particularly so for those who migrate alone or with parents. Such findings provide little support for the current public and academic opinions within China on the education wellbeing of stay children. Since education plays an important for individual socio-economic mobility in the Chinese society, the disadvantages faced by migrant children are likely to have detrimental and long-term consequences for them in particularly and for the society in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]