Why do policies that reinforce unequal opportunities persist in democracies? Daniel Roberts argues that middle-class families defend these systems to protect their social status, especially when they lack alternatives for status maintenance. Roberts interprets early-age tracking of students across schools in Germany as an "opportunity boundary" excluding immigrant children and argues that status-anxious German families defend early-age tracking against reform. In analyzing a 2010 referendum that blocked early-age tracking reform in Hamburg, Roberts shows that referendum support was highest in places where German families faced academic competition from immigrants. Join Roberts as he discusses how "boundary defense" can lead actors seeking fairer opportunity to form coalitions that pursue less confrontational reforms.
The Graduate Student Research Workshop is a seminar for graduate students at Harvard University and MIT to present their research to peers and faculty with an interest in European studies. This student-run, student-centered workshop welcomes presenters from any social science discipline who are at any stage of their research.
To join the seminar mailing list, please contact the seminar chairs. Papers will be distributed to participants via email in advance. For a schedule of upcoming workshops see here. This schedule will be updated throughout the academic year.
