This article presents ethnographic research on the aspirations of graduates from a private university in New York City, some of whom move to Los Angeles. Findings depict financial and family pressures exerting a governing force upon the graduates' futures, often beyond their control. Focusing on the narratives of four individuals, we introduce the…

This article examines the strategies of a 'new rich' class in China to transmit advantages to their children through admission into highly ranked overseas universities. In-depth interviews were conducted with parents (n = 16) and students (n = 60) at international high schools that cater to the local population in Shenzhen. The findings…

Given that exclusive boarding schools in Germany are repeatedly referred to in public and academic discourses as places of elite education, the question arises as to the consequences of boarding school socialisation and how these schools affect the post-school biographies of their alumni. This qualitative study examines the autobiographies of…

In this article, we show how collaboration between Danish municipal primary and lower secondary schools ("folkeskoler") and elite sports clubs to establish SportsClasses enables schools to set parameters that align student-athletes' attitudes and behavior towards school and academic performance. Using neo-institutional theory, we show…

In this article, we examine conceptualisations of luck evoked by a select group of elite students studying in Oxbridge, when accounting for their academic success. The emphasis on luck in their narratives is categorised into three themes. The students linked their luckiness to deservedness, used luck as a way to express humbleness, and attributed…

Global citizenship education has been in the world agenda for some time. However, different understandings of global citizenship are at play not only on the official curricula but also in the daily enactments of students within each institution. The research presented in this article seeks to investigate the notions of citizenship practices in an…

The well-established yet under-theorised body of 'Traditional International Schools' warrant much greater sociological analysis and inquiry as 'elite' educational institutions. This paper uses Basil Bernstein's "Sociology of the School" to discuss the 'expressive culture' of such schools, representing an idealised model of conduct,…

This article analyzes students' perspectives on sustainable development, environmental justice, and concomitant environmental education programs at two international schools in Singapore. Data include surveys of over 250 students and 19 focus-group interviews with 300 students. In addition to having a detailed and nuanced understanding of the…

This paper utilises ideas of correspondence as a way of thinking about intersections between school and work in Singapore's developmental state. Whereas the principle of correspondence predicts segregated patterns of association between school and work, this paper shows how a developmentalist form of political economy gives rise to crosscutting,…

The paper seeks to understand the trajectories of students who defer entry to university. The study was conducted in Lithuania, a former Soviet Union republic. The phenomenon of a "gap year" is usually associated with young people, who decide not to enter higher education schools immediately after receiving secondary education, instead…

The paper examines processes of cultural production and reproduction among members of the elite and upper-middle classes. Drawing on findings from a study of private education in England, it explores the utility of a conceptual framework to examine how practices in and across different sites may be reproductive of various forms of…

Intercultural interaction plays an important role in contributing to international students' learning and wellbeing in the host country. While research on international students' intercultural interactions reveals multifaceted aspects of personal and social factors, there is a tendency to consider language barrier and cultural differences as…

This paper offers a conceptual analysis of ability discourse using the theoretical lens of critical whiteness studies and the methodological framework of critical discourse analysis. From its origins in the Progressive Era to contemporary debates on tracking, the concept of giftedness has been formed through racial projects throughout US history.…

This paper analyses the educational attainment of Tajikistani adults born between 1947 and 1989. Adults in the oldest cohorts completed school during the educational expansion of the Soviet period and the youngest cohorts completed their education in the post-Soviet period, which was marked by educational contraction. To date, there is not a clear…

The objective of this work is to reflect on unequal schooling opportunities in Brazil, focusing on certain characteristics that mark, nowadays, the schooling trajectories of young people from middle- and high-income families. Our previous researches showed that an important part of these families are increasingly investing in international…