Strangers in the Homeland? The Academic Performance of U.S.-Born Children of Return Migrants in Mexico

The number of return migrants from the U.S. to Mexico has swelled in recent years, yet we know little about the academic performance of the over 500,000 U.S.-born children who have accompanied them. This study compares Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) test scores of U.S.-born children of return migrants in Mexico to two groups: Mexican-born students in Mexico and students in the U.S. born to Spanish-speaking immigrant parents. While previous work often highlights the struggles these children face in adapting to schools in Mexico, at age 15 they attain slightly higher PISA scores than their Mexican-born counterparts. However, these adolescents’ scores are much lower than similar youths’ in the U.S. Results for both comparisons change little in models controlling for variables related to immigrant selection and are consistent across possible individual moderators, including age at migration. This paper highlights the importance of a cross-border perspective and attention to institutional context in studies of immigrant education.