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on Education |
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Issue of 2026–03–30
twenty papers chosen by João Carlos Correia Leitão, Universidade da Beira Interior |
| By: | Theodore J. Joyce; Mina Afrouzi Khosroshahi; Sarah Truelsch; Kerstin Gentsch; Kyle Du |
| Abstract: | Recent studies of Ivy-Plus institutions suggest that standardized test scores (SAT/ACT) are far better predictors of college success than high school grade point average (HS-GPA), prompting a return to the requirement that test scores be submitted for admission at elite colleges. We ask whether re-establishing the SAT requirement for admission at a large urban public university system would improve the predictability of academic outcomes. Using administrative data for the 2010-2019 first-year cohorts, we update earlier work of students from public universities as to the relative predictive power of HSGPA and SAT scores on first-year outcomes and graduation rates. Contrary to findings at elite private institutions, we find that HSGPA is the dominant predictor of academic success in this public system. A one-standard-deviation increase in HSGPA is four to six times more predictive of six-year graduation than a comparable increase in SAT scores. Out-of-sample forecasts for the post-COVID period (2020–2024) confirm that test-optional models relying only on HSGPA experience relatively little loss in predictive accuracy compared to models that include test scores. We conclude that HSGPA remains the most reliable signal of degree completion at broad-access public universities. |
| JEL: | J13 |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:34975 |
| By: | Mariagrazia Cavallo; Elizabeth Dhuey; Luca Fumarco; Levi Halewyck; Simon ter Meulen |
| Abstract: | This article reviews the growing literature on age at school entry and its effects over the life course. Age at school entry affects a broad range of outcomes, including education, labor-market performance, health, social relationships, and family formation. We synthesize the evidence using a conceptual framework that distinguishes four empirically intertwined components of age at school entry: starting age, age at outcome, relative age, and time in school. Within this framework, we highlight six key channels through which age at school entry operates. While the effects of age at school entry are often substantial and persistent, many studies estimate bundled impacts without isolating specific components or directly measuring underlying mechanisms. We explain how different research designs capture distinct combinations of these components. We also highlight how institutional heterogeneity and behavioral responses can complicate the interpretation of results. We conclude by outlining directions for future research and policy design. |
| Keywords: | age at school entry, Relative age, School starting age, Institutional heterogeneity, Behavioral responses |
| JEL: | I12 I21 I24 I31 J12 J13 J24 K42 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12545 |
| By: | Andreas de Barros; Theresa Lubozha |
| Abstract: | Whether targeted foundational instruction yields broad, long-term human capital gains is central to education policy but largely untested. We provide causal evidence from Zambia's government-run foundational skills program in public primary schools. After two years, a randomized trial shows the program increases literacy by 0.10 and numeracy by 0.15 standard deviations. In mathematics, effects on targeted skills are 2.6 times larger than on comprehensive assessments, without detectable transfer to adjacent domains. Adding professional development doubles per-pupil costs without additional learning gains. Despite limited short-run transfer, event-study estimates show positive effects on grade-7 language and mathematics exam scores in early adolescence. |
| Keywords: | field experiment, foundational skills, human capital, long-term effects, skill formation, skill transfer |
| JEL: | C93 H52 I21 I28 J24 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12542 |
| By: | Lavy, Victor (University of Warwick, Hebrew University, and NBE); Shayo, Moses (Hebrew University of Jerusalem and King’s College London) |
| Abstract: | We study how teachers' rule violations in grading affect students' ethical behavior. Using administrative data from high-stakes exams, combining teacher-assigned internal scores with externally graded national exam scores, we track teacher grading violations and subsequent student cheating. We explore three potential mechanisms: imitation (learning that rules can be broken), positive reciprocity (responding favorably to favorable treatment), and negative reciprocity (retaliating against unfavorable treatment). Exploiting within-student variation in exposure to different teachers, we find students are significantly more likely to cheat when teachers break the rules to their detriment (systematically undergrading), consistent with both imitation and negative reciprocity. However, when teachers systematically overgrade, responses vary by community structure. In heterogeneous communities, overgrading increases student cheating, suggesting imitation dominates. In homogeneous communities, students respond by cheating less, consistent with positive reciprocity dominating. This pattern holds across multiple homogeneity measures, including surname concentration and residential clustering. Survey measures of mutual respect and support between students and teachers confirm this pattern. |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wrk:warwec:1604 |
| By: | Genakos, Christos; Kyrkopoulou, Eleni |
| Abstract: | What is the impact of an increase of lower-ability students in a university class? We examine a natural experiment in which students from large, low-income families had the chance to transfer to academic programs at a local university. Multiple law changes meant that there was significant, quasi-random variability in the number of transferred students over time, which was orthogonal to the quality of receiving students. We create a novel dataset for the top economics department in Greece and show that the social policy had a negative educational impact by uniformly lowering recipient students' academic performance once the proportion of transferred students exceeded a certain threshold. |
| Keywords: | externalities; peer effects; unintended consequences; university education |
| JEL: | H52 I20 |
| Date: | 2026–03–31 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:137495 |
| By: | Ha Nguyen; Chapman, Bruce; Huong Le; Royer, Heather; Dearden, Lorraine; Mitrou, Francis |
| Abstract: | This study leverages whole-of-population linked census-administrative data to examine gender gaps in educational outcomes from early primary school through early adulthood in Australia and to assess the contribution of socioeconomic factors to these gaps. We find that females outperform males from as early as ages 5-6 across multiple developmental domains, and this advantage persists through university. The gender gap in favour of females is larger among lower-performing students. These findings are robust across population-wide analyses as well as sibling- and twin-based designs. We also find that boys benefit more than girls from growing up in more advantaged families, particularly among academically lower-performing boys. However, this advantage is observed only for outcomes measured in the early years of primary school. By contrast, for outcomes measured at the tertiary level, most indicators of socioeconomic advantage confer stronger benefits to females, especially among individuals at the lower end of the educational attainment distribution. Finally, we identify gender differences across siblings in school sector choice and early childhood health conditions, both favouring females, as potential mechanisms underlying these patterns. |
| Keywords: | Education, Gender Gap, Socioeconomic Status, Administrative data, Census, Australia |
| JEL: | I24 J13 J15 J16 J62 R23 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:1725 |
| By: | Karhunen, Hannu; Kauhanen, Antti; Kuhakoski, Jani; Riukula, Krista; Suhonen, Tuomo; Vanhala, Pekka; Virtanen, Hanna |
| Abstract: | Abstract This study evaluated the effectiveness of two different measures in increasing participation in adult education among adults with low educational attainment, using a randomised field experiment. In the first part, an information letter was sent to 50, 000 individuals with only basic education, outlining educational options, the benefits of studying, and available financial support. The results indicated that providing general information alone had no effect on starting studies. In the second experiment, service providers visited SMEs and offered tailored educational guidance, organising 1, 322 information sessions attended by 2, 726 employees. Of these, 1, 718 belonged to the target group, with their highest level of education being comprehensive school or upper secondary school. This more personalised and intensive measure increased participation in upper secondary education within the target group by 0.75 percentage points (approximately 8 percent), but also caused a slight decrease in monthly earnings, suggesting a shift in time allocation between studying and working. The study demonstrates that simply disseminating information is insufficient; effectiveness requires more individualised and costlier actions, the benefits and costs of which must be weighed carefully. |
| Keywords: | Adult education, Low-educated, Information intervention, Field experiment, Lifelong learning |
| JEL: | I21 J24 O15 |
| Date: | 2026–03–16 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rif:report:174 |
| By: | Patrinos, Harry Anthony; Psacharopoulos, George |
| Abstract: | Using 191 estimates from 145 studies across 54 countries, this paper synthesizes evidence on private returns to schooling. Quasi-experimental estimates imply an average causal return of about 10 % per year of education, with instrumental-variables (IV) estimates exceeding ordinary least squares (OLS) in roughly 80 % of cases. The IV-OLS gap is larger in lower- and middle-income countries. We interpret this pattern as reflecting high marginal returns in low-education environments and the fact that IV identifies local average treatment effects for individuals whose schooling is changed by policy variation. Schooling yields substantial earnings gains, especially when policies expand participation among constrained groups. |
| Keywords: | returns to education; endogeneity; human capital; data set |
| JEL: | J24 |
| Date: | 2026–04–30 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:137721 |
| By: | Aggey Simons (Semenov) (Department of Economics, University of Ottawa, Canada) |
| Abstract: | Why does scholarship aid sometimes fail to increase postsecondary persistence among Indigenous students, and in some settings even reduce it? Because schooling has historically been associated with residential schools, boarding schools, and assimilationist state projects, persistence can signal not only investment in human capital but also exit from the home community. I model persistence as a signaling game between a student and the home community in which community support feeds back into the student's payoff from schooling. The student privately knows whether the orientation type is community-oriented or exit-oriented, while the community observes persistence and decides whether to extend support. The baseline model yields four implications. First, when schooling is culturally alienating, students most attached to the community may be the most likely to leave. Second, scholarships can crowd out persistence by weakening the inference that persistence reflects community-oriented motives. Third, Indigenous institutional design raises persistence directly and by preserving legitimacy. Fourth, legitimacy thresholds generate multiple equilibria. Extensions show that scholarship crowd-out is not generic and that sponsor mission shapes the mix between cash aid and institutional legibility. I also document descriptive patterns consistent with the mechanism: large attainment gaps alongside substantial scholarship infrastructure, stronger persistence in tribally governed and culturally grounded institutions, and a strong association between support environments and educational completion. The policy implication is not that financial aid is unimportant, but that it is most effective when combined with institutional design and support structures that make persistence legible as community-serving. |
| Keywords: | Indigenous Education, Educational Persistence, Identity and Signaling, Scholarships, Institutional Design. |
| JEL: | I21 I24 J15 D82 Z13 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ott:wpaper:2602e |
| By: | Eiji Yamamura |
| Abstract: | Immediately after the establishment of the New Meiji Government in the 19th century, a system of conscription was adopted. The exemption rule has changed several times. Using individual-level panel data on the academic performance of Keio Gijuku, I found a surge in the family head's student rate between 1884 and 1888, and the rate declined immediately thereafter. After regaining privileges for private school students, family head performance declined, and the difference between head and non-family heads disappeared. This made it evident that conscription increased educational attendance quantitatively, but did not qualitatively improve academic performance. |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2603.09005 |
| By: | István Boza (ELTE Centre for Economic and Regional Studies); Dániel Horn (Corvinus University Budapest; ELTE Centre for Economic and Regional Studies) |
| Abstract: | This paper introduces a framework that combines a traditional Mincer wage equation with an Abowd–Kramarz–Margolis (AKM) decomposition in a unified linear framework. The approach allows pre-labor market entry group-level factors to be mapped transparently onto the underlying channels of wage determination, including individual earning capacity, firm sorting, and occupational allocation. Applying the method to linked employer–employee administrative data from Hungary, we study how secondary schools are related to early-career wage inequality. Secondary school affiliation explains about 15% of wage variation among young workers, with a substantial share operating through sorting into firms and occupations. Controlling for completed educational attainment reduces school effects. However, these effects do not disappear completely and persist even after controlling for pre-existing differences in student pools measured around the age of 14-15. More broadly, the framework provides a general tool for studying how institutions shape labor-market outcomes through multiple economic channels. |
| Keywords: | wage inequality, school effects, AKM decomposition, Mincer equation, employer–employee linked data, labor market outcomes |
| JEL: | J31 J24 I26 C32 |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:has:discpr:2604 |
| By: | Samuel Berlinski; Michele Giannola; Alessandro Toppeta |
| Abstract: | We study the relative effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and interaction of family- and school-based learning interventions using a randomized controlled trial in Colombia that assigns children to a parental engagement program, a teacher professional development program, both, or a control group. Both interventions are grounded in a child-centered learning approach that emphasizes active engagement and the progression from informal to formal mathematical understanding. Each intervention independently generates sizable and statistically similar gains in early numeracy (0.17SD and 0.20SD). Combining them produces no additional learning gains, suggesting that the two interventions act as substitutes over the time horizon and skill domain we study. When benefits accruing to future cohorts are taken into account, the teacher development program becomes at least as cost-effective as, and potentially more cost-effective than, the parental engagement intervention. Our results suggest that, in this setting, strategically concentrating resources on a single binding constraint -- either at home or in school -- maximizes the short-run learning gains per dollar spent. |
| Keywords: | families, schools, human capital |
| JEL: | A2 H52 I25 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12563 |
| By: | Natalie Bau; Corinne Low; Simona Simona; Bryce Steinberg |
| Abstract: | Investment in tertiary education in Africa, unlike richer settings, is often portrayed as inequitable and inefficient. Yet, though Africa will produce much of the world’s future workforce, there is little information on college students’ financial constraints. Novel data from a Zambian flagship university show that students are highly financially vulnerable and food insecure, on par with the "ultra-poor.'' Because universities are typically urban, cash poor rural students struggle with high urban costs of living. Being allocated on-campus housing leads to less financial vulnerability and better academic outcomes. Financially supporting African university students could promote both equity and efficiency. |
| JEL: | I22 I24 I25 I30 O1 O12 |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:34989 |
| By: | Annie Liu; Pinghui Wu |
| Abstract: | Educational attainment profoundly shapes cumulative earnings trends across US birth cohorts. Between the 1933 and 1977 cohorts, men with an advanced degree experienced rising earnings in both the early-career (ages 25 to 44) and late-career (ages 45 to 64) stages, while those with a sub-baccalaureate education―and college graduates outside the 1951–1965 cohorts―saw minimal earnings growth. Women experienced broad-based gains, with larger increases among those with a bachelor’s or advanced degree. For less educated men, extended work life represented the primary growth margin in the late-career stage. While gaps between education groups widened, within-group dispersion rose across cohorts, particularly among men born between 1933 and 1957. These cohort-to-cohort changes emerged at labor market entry and persisted throughout the career cycle, indicating that the conditions in which careers begin critically shape long-run inequality dynamics. |
| Keywords: | educational attainment; long-term cumulative earnings; earnings disparities |
| JEL: | I24 I26 J24 J31 |
| Date: | 2026–03–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedbwp:102908 |
| By: | Sidney Xiang; Nicholas David; Dallas Card; Wenhao Sun; Daniel M Romero; Misha Teplitskiy |
| Abstract: | Scientific innovation often comes from researchers who pivot across disciplines. However, prior work found that established researchers face productivity penalties when pivoting. Here, we investigate the consequences of pivoting at the beginning of a research career -- doctoral admissions -- when the benefits of importing new ideas might outweigh the switching costs. Using applications to all PhD programs at a large research-intensive university between 2013-2023, we find that pivoters (those applying to programs outside their prior disciplinary training) have lower GPAs and standardized test scores than non-pivoters. Yet even conditional on these predictors of admission, pivoters are 1.3 percentage points less likely to be admitted. Examining applicants who applied to multiple programs in the same admissions cycle provides suggestive evidence that the admissions pivot penalty is causal. This penalty is significantly smaller for applicants who secure a recommendation from someone within the target discipline. Among those admitted and enrolled, pivoters are 12.9 percentage points less likely to graduate and do not show superior publication performance on average or at the tail. Our results reveal the substantial costs of disciplinary pivoting even at the outset of research careers, which constrain the flow of new ideas into research communities. |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:2603.22805 |
| By: | Xiaoyue Shan |
| Abstract: | Does group gender diversity benefit individuals? I examine this question with a field experiment randomizing 3, 060 students to small study groups at university entry. Assignment to mixed-gender rather than single-gender groups improves performance and well-being for both men and women: first-year grades increase by about 0.10 SD, well-being by 0.15 SD, and program dropout falls by 6 pp (24%). However, mixed-gender groups also induce more traditional attitudes toward family gender roles. Mechanism analyses suggest that gender diversity fosters collaboration and shifts gender attitudes by reinforcing gendered roles in social interaction: while women coordinate and ask questions, men compete and explain. |
| Keywords: | gender diversity, performance, well-being, gender roles |
| JEL: | C93 D91 I21 I31 J16 |
| Date: | 2026 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_12565 |
| By: | Coady Wing; Wei-Lun Lo; Maddie Potter; Tarik Yuce; Alberto Ortega; John Cawley; Thuy D. Nguyen; Kosali I. Simon |
| Abstract: | We document state variation in Medicaid coverage for obesity-indicated GLP-1 medications over time, and use a stacked difference-in-differences design to estimate the effects of coverage on utilization and net-of-rebate spending. Nine quarters out, coverage increases prescriptions for obesity-indicated GLP-1 medications by 0.82 per 100 enrollee-months (SE = 0.10). Coverage had no effect on GLP-1 prescribing for diabetes or cardiovascular indications, suggesting that off-label prescribing of diabetes formulations for obesity is not very common in the Medicaid program. The expansions do not appear to affect consumer spending at major online GLP-1 compounding firms, which suggests that the utilization response in our main analysis reflects new utilization rather than crowd-out. We find that coverage increases net-of-rebate Medicaid spending by $751.6 per 100 enrollee-months (SE = $92.0), compared to $986.9 in gross reimbursements—manufacturer rebates reduce the state’s net spending by approximately 24 percent. Across the 17 states that ever covered obesity-indicated GLP-1 medications by mid 2025, coverage increased Medicaid net spending by around $2.68 billion per year. Extending Medicaid coverage in the remaining states would generate a further $3.63 billion in annual net spending. |
| JEL: | I11 I13 I18 |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:34949 |
| By: | Lingxiao Huang (Nanjing University); Wenyang Xiao (Nanjing University); Nisheeth K. Vishnoi (Yale University) |
| Abstract: | As AI systems enter institutional workflows, workers must decide whether to delegate task execution to AI and how much effort to invest in verifying AI outputs, while institutions evaluate workers using outcome-based standards that may misalign with workers' private costs. We model delegation and verification as the solution to a rational worker's optimization problem, and define worker quality by evaluating an institution-centered utility (distinct from the worker's objective) at the resulting optimal action. We formally characterize optimal worker workflows and show that AI induces phase transitions, where arbitrarily small differences in verification ability lead to sharply different behaviors. As a result, AI can amplify workers with strong verification reliability while degrading institutional worker quality for others who rationally over-delegate and reduce oversight, even when baseline task success improves and no behavioral biases are present. These results identify a structural mechanism by which AI reshapes institutional worker quality and amplifies quality disparities between workers with different verification reliability. |
| Date: | 2026–03–01 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cwl:cwldpp:2500 |
| By: | Rivero III, Roberto; Atilano, Lesley Ann; Moreno, Frede |
| Abstract: | This study investigates the utilization of artificial intelligence (AI) among Juris Doctor (JD) students in Zamboanga City, Philippines, combining empirical and doctrinal analysis. The research employs a mixed-methods approach, synthesizing data from surveys (N=150), interviews, and focus group discussions, alongside doctrinal review of Philippine legal education norms and professional responsibility standards. Findings indicate that students frequently adopt AI for research, case summarization, drafting, and exam preparation, yet institutional guidance and ethical clarity remain limited. Only 34% of students consistently disclose AI use, and faculty report inconsistent policies across courses. Doctrinal analysis identifies three guiding principles for AI integration: transparency, competence, and alignment with assessment objectives. Applying these principles, the study proposes that law schools develop localized pedagogical frameworks, including AI literacy instruction, disclosure protocols, and assessment strategies that emphasize reasoning processes. The research underscores a regulatory vacuum in Philippine legal education regarding AI, highlighting the need for institution-specific policies to maintain doctrinal rigor, academic integrity, and professional competence. By situating empirical evidence within doctrinal and pedagogical frameworks, the study provides actionable recommendations for responsible AI adoption, contributing to the scholarship on technology integration in legal education in non-metropolitan, Global South contexts. |
| Keywords: | artificial intelligence, legal education, Juris Doctor, pedagogy, ethical disclosure, Zamboanga City, Philippines |
| JEL: | I0 I2 I20 I21 I23 I26 I28 I29 K00 K10 K19 K30 Y50 Y80 Z0 |
| Date: | 2026–01–06 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:127613 |
| By: | Sofie Cairo; Ria Ivandic; Anne Sophie Lassen; Valentina Tartari |
| Abstract: | Persistent gender gaps in the labor market are largely driven by the underrepresentation of women at the top of most professions. We study how parenthood shapes gender gaps in academic careers using population-wide administrative and survey data linked to productivity and promotion records. Parenthood marks a sharp divergence in academic careers: one in three women exit academia following motherhood. Men also experience a decline in academic employment after fatherhood, but the effects are substantially smaller. For mothers, childbirth leads to a persistent decline in both tenure attainment and research output, while men's trajectories on these margins are unaffected by parenthood. The child penalty on tenure is driven primarily by women's higher exit rates from academia. Gender differences in career aspirations do not explain these findings; instead, childcare and mobility constraints play a central role. Child penalties are exacerbated in highly competitive environments and environments without senior female role models. |
| Keywords: | gender, labour, academic, careers, child care, penalty |
| Date: | 2026–03–16 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp2160 |