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on Education |
| By: | Xi Lin |
| Abstract: | This study examines how childhood residential location affects cognitive skills, focusing on the roles of neighborhood and primary school quality in shaping children’s school performance. Using administrative data from the Netherlands, I estimate the causal effect of neighborhood exposure—defined as the impact of time spent in a neighborhood—on children’s test scores at the end of their primary education. By comparing children who move at different ages, I separate the effects of exposure from those of sorting into neighborhoods. The results show that for each additional year a child spends in a neighborhood with higher expected test scores, their test scores improve by approximately 2.5% relative to the total gap between the lower- and higher-performing neighborhoods. As families can choose primary schools without geographical restrictions in the Netherlands, I can further isolate improvements attributable to school quality. Approximately 40% of the observed improvements in test scores can be explained by differences in primary school quality. These findings highlight the critical roles of neighborhood environments and school quality in reducing spatial educational inequalities. |
| Keywords: | Neighborhood Effects, Mover Design, Intergenerational Mobility |
| JEL: | I24 |
| Date: | 2025–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bon:boncrc:crctr224_2025_618 |
| By: | Tumen, Semih (Amazon); Vlassopoulos, Michael (University of Southampton); Wahba, Jackline (University of Southampton) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the causal impact of a large-scale Turkish language training program on the academic performance, school participation, and mental well-being of Syrian refugee children in T¨urkiye. Using rich administrative data and a staggered difference-in-differences design, we find that the program led to improvements in Turkish language and Math scores of refugee students, along with a significant reduction in their school absences. The language gains and associated improvements in school outcomes are more pronounced for younger refugee children with lower pre-program academic performance, which suggests that early language interventions are more effective for integration. In addition, we provide evidence that the language training program generated modest positive spillovers on native students. Finally, we identify mental health as a potential key channel through which the program enhanced educational outcomes, as alleviating language barriers improved concentration, reduced anxiety, and decreased bullying. Our findings underline the critical role of language training in improving refugee students' educational outcomes and mental well-being, and fostering social cohesion. |
| Keywords: | language, refugee integration, school outcomes, mental health |
| JEL: | I21 I31 J15 J24 Z13 |
| Date: | 2025–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17593 |
| By: | Shah, Chandra; Watt, Helen M. G.; Richardson, Paul W. |
| Abstract: | To compare 'in-field' versus 'out-of-field' teachers of Years 7-10 mathematics in Australia on key demographic and instructional dimensions, we analysed nationally representative system data collected by the OECD Teaching and Learning International Survey (TALIS), one of the world's largest survey of teachers and school leaders. Latest available TALIS 2018 data from teachers teaching Years 7-10 mathematics (N = 1, 120; 284 of whom taught mathematics out-of-field) showed out-of-field teachers were mostly from a STEM background qualified to teach science and/or technology, and were less commonly older or more experienced. Out-of-field teachers were more concentrated in public schools, having less principal autonomy, lower academic pressure, with greater school delinquency and violence. There were no statistically significant differences between in-field and out-of-field teachers on their non-mathematics specific motivations, values, self-efficacy, professional development needs and barriers, professional engagement or wellbeing. Specific to mathematics teaching, we compared 'in-field' versus 'out-of-field' Years 7-10 mathematics teacher reports of key instructional practices specific to a 'target' mathematics class (N = 472; 65 of whom taught mathematics out-of-field), which revealed likely negative consequences for student engagement and learning. Out-of-field teachers spent more time than in-field teachers on classroom management and disciplining students, lost more time due to student interruption, reported much disruptive noise in class, only occasionally presented tasks for which there was no obvious solution, and spent less time teaching, although they did not differ on time spent in practices related to instructional clarity. Out-of-field teachers also reported more time setting students extended projects to complete, letting students evaluate their own progress, and providing immediate feedback when observing students working on particular tasks. Targeted mathematics classes taught by out-of-field teachers had higher concentrations of low-achievers, indicating a bias in which students are assigned teachers not specialised to teach mathematics. Recommendations are advanced regarding professional development priorities for teachers teaching mathematics out-of-field. |
| Keywords: | out-of-field teaching in mathematics, teacher efficacy, instructional practice |
| JEL: | I21 I22 I24 I28 I29 J24 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1520 |
| By: | Hammed Musibau; Joaquin Vespignani; Maria Belen Yanotti |
| Abstract: | This paper explores the impact of education quality on economic growth in 37 OECD countries. We developed a new dataset that combines mixed-frequency data, including low-frequency data (every three years) from the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and annual data from the World Development Indicators (WDI), covering the period from 2000 to 2018. Our study investigates the relationship between education quality and economic growth. We found that a 1% increase in educational quality contribute to an annual economic growth rate of 2.8%. This result is significantly higher than previous research, which, based on cross-sectional PISA data, reported growth rates ranging from 0.4% to 2.3%. |
| Keywords: | economic growth, education quality, PISA data |
| JEL: | O47 F64 C31 |
| Date: | 2024–12 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:een:camaaa:2024-72 |
| By: | Lin, Zhuoer; Wang, Yi; Gill, Thomas M.; Chen, Xi |
| Abstract: | Disparities in cognition persist between non-Hispanic Black (hereafter, Black) and non-Hispanic White (hereafter, White) older adults, and are possibly influenced by early educational differences stemming from structural racism. However, the relationship between school racial segregation and later-life cognition remains underexplored. We examined a nationally sample of older Americans from the Health and Retirement Study. Utilizing childhood residence data and cognitive assessment data (1995-2018) for Black and White participants aged 65 and older, Black-White dissimilarity index for public elementary schools measuring school segregation, multilevel analyses revealed a significant negative association between school segregation and later-life cognitive outcomes among Black participants, but not among White participants. Potential mediators across the life course, including educational attainment, explained 58-73% of the association, yet the associations remained large and significant among Black participants for all outcomes. Given the rising trend of school segregation in the US, educational policies aimed at reducing segregation are crucial to address health inequities. Clinicians can leverage patients' early-life educational circumstances to promote screening, prevention, and management of cognitive disorders. |
| Keywords: | early-life circumstances, school segregation, quality of education, racial disparity, cognition, dementia, health equity |
| JEL: | I14 I24 I10 J14 J15 H75 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1527 |