Do residential colleges promote sustainable education and reduce educational disparities based on gender and socioeconomic background?

Abstract

As the cornerstone of the fourth Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) that was developed by the United Nations, equitable access to high-quality education is universally acknowledged as a fundamental human right and a major force that makes economic progress possible. This objective is nevertheless hampered by enduring gender and socioeconomic status (SES) disparities that are maintained by the current power structure and workings of society. In public institutions, the use of residential colleges (RCs) is a strategy that has produced favourable outcomes. On the other hand, the usefulness of RCSs in Chinese private universities has received less attention. Evaluating RCSs’ contribution to sustainable development in public and private higher education is the goal of this article. RC students and non-RC students – two categories of university students – were surveyed. The analysis, which employs a quantitative research methodology, demonstrates that RC is not always effective in guaranteeing children from all socioeconomic backgrounds for an equitable opportunity to education. The difference in admissions is noticeable in private colleges especially. However, in both public and private schools, RC is crucial in reducing the gap in terms of academic success between children from various socioeconomic backgrounds. Academic performance does not significantly differ between male and female RC students or between RC and non-RC pupils. As a result, RC effectively reduces academic inequality. This is crucial to promoting sustainable development in the education sector.