As expected, there are significant differences between movers and non-movers (table 1). Students who never make a summer move are overwhelmingly enrolled in K–8 schools in fourth grade, disproportionately black (40 percent), poor (85 percent), and relatively low scoring (0.005 ELA and 0.020 math, grade 5; and 0.146 ELA and 0.132 math, grade 8), and those making only one summer move are almost entirely enrolled in K–5 or K–6 schools in fourth grade, disproportionately Asian (17 percent), white (14 percent), and high scoring (0.193 ELA and 0.262 math, grade 5; and 0.240 ELA and 0.226 math, grade 8).19 Furthermore, of the 66.2 percent of students who make only one summer move, the overwhelming majority make a structural move (87 percent) rather than a nonstructural move (13 percent). That is, students with relatively low levels of mobility appear less likely to make voluntary moves. Students making more than one summer move have characteristics associated with traditionally at-risk students: higher shares of black (34 percent), Hispanic (45 percent), and poor (84 percent) students, and lower performance on ELA and math exams in both fifth and eighth grades. Moreover, students who make two or more summer moves also make more mid-year moves than their peers who make zero or one summer move (0.30 compared with 0.13 and 0.09, respectively) and make roughly equal numbers of structural and nonstructural moves. Students who make at least one mid-year move are the lowest scoring of all groups (–0.031 ELA and –0.017 math, grade 5; and 0.025 ELA and –0.073 math, grade 8) and are disproportionately black (38 percent) and poor (86 percent). The majority of mid-year movers also experience at least one summer move during their academic careers (for relationship between summer and mid-year mobility, see table A.3 in the online appendix). Thus, movers and non-movers differ in in a variety of ways.

Table 1. 
Eighth Grade Student Characteristics by Mobility History, Renters Only
Summer MovesMid-year Moves
NoneOneTwo plusNoneAny
(1)(2)(3)(4)(5)
Female 0.53 0.53 0.53 0.53 0.52 
Asian 0.08 0.17 0.13 0.16 0.12 
Black 0.40 0.27 0.34 0.29 0.38 
Hispanic 0.39 0.42 0.45 0.42 0.42 
White 0.12 0.14 0.08 0.13 0.08 
Foreign born 0.08 0.10 0.11 0.10 0.11 
Limited English proficient 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.02 
Non-English at home 0.36 0.47 0.43 0.47 0.38 
Poor 0.85 0.80 0.84 0.81 0.86 
Graded special education 0.06 0.05 0.07 0.05 0.08 
Test scores      
5th grade ELA 0.005 0.193 0.034 0.160 −0.031 
8th grade ELA 0.146 0.240 0.095 0.218 0.025 
5th grade math 0.020 0.262 0.073 0.224 −0.017 
8th grade math 0.132 0.226 0.051 0.206 −0.073 
Average # summer moves 0.00 1.00 2.24 1.22 1.65 
Average # structural moves 0.00 0.87 1.05 0.87 0.83 
Average # nonstructural moves 0.00 0.13 1.19 0.35 0.82 
Average # mid-year moves 0.13 0.09 0.30 0.00 1.25 
Grade span of 4th grade school      
K to 8+ 0.59 0.05 0.06 0.09 0.09 
K to 4 0.00 0.04 0.06 0.04 0.05 
K to 5 0.17 0.73 0.62 0.67 0.63 
K to 6 0.17 0.16 0.16 0.16 0.18 
All others 0.07 0.02 0.10 0.04 0.05 
Observations 5,829 57,403 23,533 76,134 10,631 
Percent of total 6.7% 66.2% 17.1% 87.7% 12.3% 
Summer MovesMid-year Moves
NoneOneTwo plusNoneAny
(1)(2)(3)(4)(5)
Female 0.53 0.53 0.53 0.53 0.52 
Asian 0.08 0.17 0.13 0.16 0.12 
Black 0.40 0.27 0.34 0.29 0.38 
Hispanic 0.39 0.42 0.45 0.42 0.42 
White 0.12 0.14 0.08 0.13 0.08 
Foreign born 0.08 0.10 0.11 0.10 0.11 
Limited English proficient 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.02 0.02 
Non-English at home 0.36 0.47 0.43 0.47 0.38 
Poor 0.85 0.80 0.84 0.81 0.86 
Graded special education 0.06 0.05 0.07 0.05 0.08 
Test scores      
5th grade ELA 0.005 0.193 0.034 0.160 −0.031 
8th grade ELA 0.146 0.240 0.095 0.218 0.025 
5th grade math 0.020 0.262 0.073 0.224 −0.017 
8th grade math 0.132 0.226 0.051 0.206 −0.073 
Average # summer moves 0.00 1.00 2.24 1.22 1.65 
Average # structural moves 0.00 0.87 1.05 0.87 0.83 
Average # nonstructural moves 0.00 0.13 1.19 0.35 0.82 
Average # mid-year moves 0.13 0.09 0.30 0.00 1.25 
Grade span of 4th grade school      
K to 8+ 0.59 0.05 0.06 0.09 0.09 
K to 4 0.00 0.04 0.06 0.04 0.05 
K to 5 0.17 0.73 0.62 0.67 0.63 
K to 6 0.17 0.16 0.16 0.16 0.18 
All others 0.07 0.02 0.10 0.04 0.05 
Observations 5,829 57,403 23,533 76,134 10,631 
Percent of total 6.7% 66.2% 17.1% 87.7% 12.3% 

Notes: Mobility history includes all moves made between grades 1—8. Summer moves are made between June and October. Mid-year moves are made between October and June. Poverty is defined by eligibility for free or reduced-price lunch, or attendance in a universal free meal school. Foreign-born students have birthplaces outside the United States. Graded special education students include those receiving full- or part-time services. Test scores are measured as z-scores (mean zero and standard deviation one for all tested students by grade and year).

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