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on Education |
| By: | Chiara Cavaglia (Centre for Vocational Education Research, London School of Economics); Lindsey Macmillan (UCL Centre for Education Policy & Equalising Opportunities); Konstantina Maragkou (Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge); Richard Murphy (Department of Economics, University of Texas at Austin) |
| Abstract: | We disentangle the relationship between student ability, course quality and the match between the two on earnings, estimating the ï¬ rst mismatch parameter in the literature. Using administrative data on all state-educated students in England linked to tax records, we show that high ability students attending low quality courses earn signiï¬ cantly less than their well-matched counterparts. By contrast, we ï¬ nd no evidence that lower ability students that overmatch to high quality courses go on to earn any less than well-matched students. This is evidence that a!rmative action does not appear to have a detrimental e†ect on students’ future earnings. |
| Keywords: | mismatch, higher education, further education, returns |
| JEL: | I20 I24 I28 |
| Date: | 2024–11 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ucl:cepeow:24-09 |
| By: | Maria Pia Iocco (Department of Economics, University of Sussex, Falmer, BN1 9SL, UK, Economics & Institute for Policy Research (IPR), University of Bath, Claverton Down, Bath BA2 7AY) |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the effects of an educational reform in Guatemala that modified the training of primary teachers from three years at the secondary level (grades 10 to 12 of a diversified cycle in high school) to a combination of two years of high school and three at a university, obtaining a Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) before being able to apply to become a primary school teacher. Exploiting the timing of the implementation and an unaffected group of students as controls, I analyse the effects at the student levels in terms of enrolment and performance during their high school years and the effects on official teachers’ colleges regarding performance due to the opportunity of financial aid for their students. Results show a decrease in enrolment for primary teaching students, negative but not always significant results in math, and mixed results in reading. Besides, I also observed a change in the characteristics of aspiring educators. Official teachers’ colleges experienced an initial increase in their primary teaching performance compared to other types of schools, but the effect faded after a couple of years, becoming negative |
| Keywords: | teacher training, teacher recruiting, policy reform, primary teachers, Guatemala |
| JEL: | I21 I25 I28 |
| Date: | 2024–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sus:susewp:0624 |
| By: | Simon Wiederhold; Christina Langer |
| Abstract: | We develop novel measures of early-career skills that are more detailed, comprehensive, and labor-market-relevant than existing skill proxies. We exploit that skill requirements of apprenticeships in Germany are codified in state-approved, nationally standardized apprenticeship plans. These plans provide more than 13, 000 different skills and the exact duration of learning each skill. Following workers over their careers in administrative data, we find that cognitive, social, and digital skills acquired during apprenticeship are highly – yet differently – rewarded. We also document rising returns to digital and social skills since the 1990s, with a more moderate increase in returns to cognitive skills. |
| Keywords: | returns to skills, apprenticeship plans, labor market, earnings, early-career skills |
| JEL: | I21 I26 J24 |
| Date: | 2023–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:glh:wpfacu:204 |
| By: | Wayne Aaron Sandholtz; Wayne Sandholtz |
| Abstract: | I use variation in ex-ante school fee payments to measure how Free Secondary Education (FSE) affected primary students in Tanzania. I first confirm FSE increased secondary access: secondary enrollments rose, household spending on secondary school fees plummeted, and elites’ transition premium disappeared. I then show that FSE increased primary exam pass rates by 6% and secondary transition rates by 23%. This was not due to supply inputs: there was no effect on school entry, and class sizes rose. Instead it appears to be driven by demand-side investments: primary students selected into better schools, attended more, and worked less. |
| Keywords: | school access, human capital investments, high-stakes exam data, Tanzania |
| JEL: | I25 H52 O12 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11343 |
| By: | Barabasch, Anton (Friedrich Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany); Cygan-Rehm, Kamila (Dresden University of Technology); Leibing, Andreas (Dresden University of Technology) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the long-run consequences of a later school entry for personality traits. For identification, we exploit the statutory cutoff rules for school enrollment in Germany within a regression discontinuity design. We find that relatively older school starters have persistently lower levels of neuroticism in adulthood. This effect is entirely driven by women, which has important implications for gender gaps in the labor market, as women typically score significantly higher on neuroticism at all stages of life, which puts them at a disadvantage. Our results suggest that family decisions regarding compliance with enrollment cutoffs may have lasting implications for gender gaps in socio-emotional skills. |
| Keywords: | school starting age, personality, socio-emotional skills, education |
| JEL: | I21 I28 J24 D19 |
| Date: | 2024–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17387 |
| By: | Bratti, Massimiliano (Università degli Studi di Milano); Granato, Silvia (European Commission, Joint Research Centre); Havari, Enkelejda (IÉSEG School of Management) |
| Abstract: | Exams play a key role in a student's learning process at university, and their organization may affect student performance. A high number of retakes, for instance, could encourage procrastination or reduce effort for each attempt. This article investigates the effects of a policy change at a major Italian university that reduced the number of exam retakes allowed per subject from six to three. Using a difference-in-differences strategy, we find that this policy significantly improved first-year outcomes, including lower dropout rates, higher exam pass rates, and increased credit accumulation. We conduct several robustness checks showing that only a small fraction of these improvements can be attributed to changes in the average quality of students enrolled following the reform. Additionally, the policy contributed to an increase in on-time graduation rates, which was the main objective of the reform, without harming student GPA. This study shows that implementing a cost-effective policy, such as limiting exam retakes, can substantially enhance student progression, reducing age at graduation. |
| Keywords: | student outcomes, exams, retakes, university, Italy |
| JEL: | I21 I23 |
| Date: | 2024–10 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17400 |
| By: | Claudio Schilter; Samuel Lüthi; Stefan C. Wolter |
| Abstract: | We merge experimental data on competitiveness of a large sample of students with their complete educational history for up to ten years after the initial assessment. Exploiting quasi-random class assignments, we find that having competitive peers as classmates makes students choose and secure positions in higher-paying occupations. These occupations are also more challenging and more popular. On the cost side, competitive peers do not lead to a lower probability of graduating from the subsequent job-specific education, but they significantly increase the probability of requiring extra time to do so. |
| Keywords: | peer effects, competitiveness, occupational choice |
| JEL: | C93 D91 J24 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_11342 |
| By: | Canavire Bacarreza, Gustavo J. (World Bank); Yanez, Gunnar Poppe (Johns Hopkins University) |
| Abstract: | Developing countries face significant challenges in increasing women's labor force participation and improving job quality, partly due to the substantial presence of the informal sector. This paper examines the case of Bolivia, which has the highest level of informality in Latin America. We empirically investigate whether the expansion of children's access to education in Bolivia provides an additional explanation for the reduction in female participation in the informal sector, as children attending school would require less parental supervision. Using a structural model in which mothers decide to participate in formal markets at a cost inversely related to the likelihood of their children being enrolled in school, we find that the rise in primary school enrollment in Bolivia explains up to 40% of the decline in female workers under age 40 in informal markets. Our findings contribute to the growing body of evidence on the positive impact of children's access to education on women's labor market outcomes in developing countries. |
| Keywords: | Bolivia, female labor force participation, structural estimation |
| JEL: | C62 D13 J12 J13 J16 J21 |
| Date: | 2024–11 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17429 |