Discrimination in Grading
We report the results of an experiment that was designed to test for discrimination in grading in India. We recruited teachers to grade exams.
Research
Can Student Surveys Measure Teaching Quality?
Primary and secondary school students spend hundreds more hours in each classroom than any observer ever will.
Boston School-Assignments: Listen to the Nobel Committee
Did the Nobel Prize Committee choose this year’s economics laureates to influence the growing debate in Boston about how to assign students to public schools?
Theory and Policy in International Relations: Some Personal Reflections
Most social scientists would like to think that their work helps solve important problems.
The Educated Middle Class, their Economic Prospects, and the Arab Spring
Since late 2010, the world has witnessed a remarkable groundswell of political change in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Syria, and other Arab countries.
A Generation of School-Voucher Success
President Barack Obama last month signed an executive order promising to "improve outcomes and advance educational opportunities for African Americans." The order instructs federal agencies to "promot
First Degree Earns: The Impact of College Quality on College Completion Rates
See RWP13-005 for an updated version of this paper: We use a Massachusetts merit aid program to provide the first clear causal evidence on the impact of college quality on students’ post-secondary en
Scholars Hurt By Quality of State Colleges
It’s one thing to entice promising students to stay in Massachusetts by giving them free tuition at state colleges. But making sure those colleges serve them well is a much harder problem.
The Labor of Division: Returns to Compulsory Math Coursework
Labor economists know that a year of schooling raises earnings but have little evidence on the impact of specific courses completed.
Gold Standards?: State Standards Reform and Student Achievement
Proponents of the recent and widely adopted Common Core State Standards argue that high quality curricular standards are critical to students’ educational success.
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