The Longitudinal Effects of Residential Mobility on the Academic Achievement of Urban Elementary and Middle School Students

Residential stability matters to a young person’s educational development, and the present housing crisis has disrupted the residential stability of many families. This study uses latent growth-curve modeling to examine how changing residences affects math and reading achievement from third through eighth grade among a sample of urban elementary and middle-school students. Results show that residential moves in the early elementary years have a negative effect on math and reading achievement in third grade and a negative effect on the trajectory of reading scores thereafter. Further, there is a negative contemporaneous effect of mobility on math scores in third through eighth grade but no such contemporaneous effect on reading scores. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Publication Date: 
2012
Pages: 
385–392
Volume: 
41
Issue: 
9
Journal Name: 
Educational Researcher