Jean Jacques Rousseau in France and Johann Gottfied Herder in Germany both emphasized the role of education in building the nation-state. However, Rousseau focused on shaping the national character through citizenship education and political socialization in public schools, while Herder saw a national identity evolving from a common culture and…

Studies of academic achievement and educational and occupational mobility constitute mainstream educational sociology. The key questions and main findings within these research traditions are identified, emphasizing both stable cross-national generalizations as well as cross-national contexts which lead to variable outcomes. To illustrate, family…