SCHOOL EFFECTS ON PERFORMANCES OF MINORITY PUPILS

The impact of determinants from the individual, school and school envi ronment level with regard to educational performance of pupils from va rious ethnic o gins in the Netherlands is examined in this article. Fr om rational choice and empowerment theory crucial variables were deduc ed. By means of multilevel modelling school effects in secondary educa tion on performances in mathematics and linguistics were established. Results indicate the importance of a school policy orientated towards improving achievements of minority subgroups. A more general approach, based on the notion of shared circumstances of pupils from ethnic min ority and low socio-economic background families, did not generate pos itive results.