1. Objectifs

Intentions :
In this research, «[I] exploit the massive out migration of approximately 1 million French-Canadians who moved mainly to New England between 1865 and 1930 to look at how the educational attainment and enrollment patterns of their descendants compare with those of same aged French-speaking Quebeckers.» (p. i)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
«I use the IPUMS of the United States Census for most 20th Century census years as well as the 2000 Census to create samples of New England born individuals of French Canadian origin and of first-generation French-Canadian immigrants living in New England. […] Strong emphasis is put on the 1970 and 2000 U.S. Censuses. […] The primary sources of data are the 1971 and 2000 Censuses. In each census I form samples of french-speaking Quebeckers born in Quebec (so as to exclude french-speaking immigrants).» (p. 8-9)

Instruments :
Sondages

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistiques

3. Résumé

«Data from the 1971 (1970) Canadian (U.S.) censuses reveal that New England born residents who had French as their mother tongue enjoyed a considerable advantage in terms of educational attainment. I attribute this large discrepancy to their exposure to the U.S. public school system which had no equivalent in Quebec until the late sixties. This result is even more remarkable given the alleged negative selection out of Quebec and the fact that Franco-Americans were fairly successful in replicating the same educational institutions as the ones existing in Quebec. Turning to the 2001 (2000) Canadian (U.S.) censuses, I find strong signs that the gap has subsided for the younger aged individuals. In fact, contrary to 30 years earlier, young Quebeckers in 2001 had roughly the same number of years of schooling and were at least as likely to have some post-secondary education. However, they still trail when it comes to having at least a B.A. degree. This partial reversal reflects the impact of the ''reverse treatment'' by which Quebec made profound changes to its educational institutions, particularly in the post-secondary system, in the mid-to-late 60’s. Given the speed at which this partial catch-up occurred, it would appear that the magnitude of the intergenerational externalities that can be associated with education is at best fairly modest.» (p. i)
Note : L’auteur établit des corrélations entre le niveau d’éducation des parents et celui des enfants, et essaie d’en comprendre la signification.