Does Migration Interfere with Children's Progress in School?

Frequent interstate migration is found to be associated with an increased likelihood of being enrolled below the modal grade for age among children whose parents are not college graduates. For children of college graduates frequent interstate migration is associated with a reduction of grade skipping. Interstate migration is most likely to be undertaken by well-educated persons whose children tend to do well in school, and for this reason children who have made frequent interstate moves are less likely to be behind in school than less mobile children. The overrepresentation of the highly educated among long-distance movers is offered as partial explanation of why growing communities tend to have children of above average scholastic ability.