School Matters to Whom? The Impact of Educational Resources on Cognitive Inequality

The disparities between rural and urban students have been widely recognized in China in recent years. However, the role that school plays in reproducing this gap is not well understood. This study aims to fill this gap by analysing the impact of educational resources on the cognitive development of students with rural and urban hukou. Utilizing two waves of survey data from middle school students in the Chinese Education Panel Survey (CEPS) and employing a lagged dependent variable model, our results indicate that the cognitive development gap between rural and urban hukou students is primarily influenced by the unequal distribution of educational resources, especially disadvantaging rural hukou students. The findings suggest that public policies targeting the reduction of this educational gap should focus more on enhancing educational resources for rural students to foster their cognitive development.