Indexes of social position in high schools — Académie de Rennes

The Social Position Index (SPI) makes it possible to understand the social status of students from the professions and social categories (PCS) of their parents. For each PCS, the numerical value of the IPS corresponds to a quantitative summary of a set of socio-economic and cultural attributes related to academic success. Specifically, to determine the values associated with each PCS, we considered the weighted average of characteristics such as diplomas, cultural practices, material conditions, cultural capital and the involvement of parents in schooling. This statistical methodology is described in Rocher’s paper (2016) and is based on a data analysis method (multiple matching analysis) carried out from the DEPP panel of students entered sixth in 2007. The IPS reference values are available for each PCS and for each PCS cross (mother-father), cf. Rocher (2016). Thus, once the parents’ PCS were collected, it is sufficient to apply the reference values of the IPS. The social level of a school is appreciated by calculating the average of the IPS of the pupils who attend it. It should be recalled that, like any synthetic index, it is a simplified summary of reality, which cannot in itself account for the complexity of the socio-economic and cultural situation of the pupils welcomed in an institution. Finally, since the IPS is based on PCS reported by families and registered by institutions, it is subject to a certain margin of error: thus, it is advisable not to overinterpret differences of 3 points or less regarding the average IPS of institutions. The social heterogeneity index of an institution corresponds to the standard deviation of the social position index (SPI) of its students. The higher it is, the more diverse the social profile of students. This index has been calculated since the beginning of 2019, only for second-degree institutions. **_Champ_** The file provides the average IPS per institution as well as the standard deviation of the IPS of its students for the secondary schools of metropolitan France and DROM, public and private under contract, calculated from the data of the year N and for students of the second cycle only. In the file made available, each line corresponds to a high school for a given school year. The average IPS for each school is declined for students in the general and technological pathway only, for students in the vocational pathway only, and for all students in the upper cycle. The standard deviation of students’ IPSs is declined for students in the general and technological pathway only and for students in the vocational pathway only. **_Reference_** Rock, T. (2016). Construction of a pupil’s social position index. _Education & Training_, DEPP, 90, pp. 5-27.