Understanding the Native-Immigrant Test Scores Gap : The Case of Finland

Abstract

This Master’s Thesis studies the immigrant-native gap in terms of test performance in the PISA assessments for Finland. Data suggest that students with immigrant background perform worse than natives. I provide evidence that this unconditional gap is partially offset when some variables are introduced in the analysis. Socioeconomic status and age of arrival seem to play the biggest role in explaining the difference in performance. Some degree of heterogeneity is also found within the immigrant population in terms of performance across the socioeconomic status distribution or the language spoken at home.