Putting dollars before scholars? Evidence from for-profit charter schools in Florida

This paper compares for- and non-profit management of charter schools in Florida using a unique dataset combining enrollment and student proficiency data with the annual independent financial audits filed by all charter schools. Comparisons reveal that independent for- and non-profit charter schools locate in similar markets and serve similar student bodies, whereas for-profits belonging to a network locate in lower income, denser, and more Hispanic areas. Bearing out the concerns of parents and policymakers, regression estimates indicate that, among independent charters, for-profits spend less per pupil on instruction and achieve lower student proficiency gains. By contrast, among charter schools belonging to a network, for-profits spend approximately 11% less per pupil, but expenses on student instruction are not being cut. The estimates, which control for differences across schools in student composition and other characteristics, imply that an equivalent level of per pupil expenses purchases about 0.03σ higher student proficiency at network for-profit charter schools.     

Does high school quality matter? Evidence from admissions data

This paper examines the effect of attending elite private high school on college placement using admissions data from the most selective high school in a large metropolitan area. To overcome omitted variable bias, we limit the sample to admitted applicants and control directly for the scores assigned by admissions based on in-depth analyses of the applicants and their families. In addition, we control for a wide set of covariates including student and family characteristics and entrance exam scores. Results indicate that attending selective private high school rather than other public and private high schools causes students to attend more selective universities. Effects are driven by gains for girls and students from lower-income neighborhoods.     

Is there a quantity–quality trade-off as pupil–teacher ratios increase? Evidence from Tamil Nadu,India

Developing countries have been quite successful at expanding enrollments in education, especially at the lower levels. But for any given level of efficiency, increased enrollments require increased resources, in order to maintain quality. If these resources are not forthcoming, the increase in educational quantity may come at the expense of quality. Is there a quantity–quality trade-off and what public policies can diminish it, in the face of strong constraints on public budgets? This paper explores the negative impact of such an enrollment expansion—unaccompanied by increased numbers of teachers—on school conditions and learning, using a cross-district time series analysis of Tamil Nadu, India as a case in point. It examines alternative policies which can be used to avoid such negative effects—by more efficient use of existing public resources and by expansion of over-all educational resources through greater reliance on private management and finance.     

Do Differential Grading Standards Across Fields Matter for Major Choice? Evidence from a Policy Change in Florida

Research in Higher Education - Grading standards in college vary substantially across fields, especially among STEM fields that tend to give lower grades than non-STEM fields. Prior research has...     

Does preschool improve child development and affect the quality of parent-child interaction? Evidence from Algeria

This paper investigates the impact of attending early childcare on the quality of parent–child interactions and children’s cognitive outcomes. Our strategy is to identify geographical differences on the basis of exposure to the program, using the period when the program was implemented across Algerian municipalities as a control for individual early childcare attendance. We estimate our results using 2SLS regression analysis and employ a difference-in-difference strategy. We use two Multiple Indicator Cluster Surveys conducted in 2006 and 2012. Our results indicate a positive correlation of preschool on the cognitive development of children. In turn, the effect is only significant given the quality of interaction between mother and children. Therefore, this finding suggests that there is a substitution effect taking place, as mothers can utilize newly acquired time relieved from childcare to accomplish other pursuits. These findings call for future research on parents’, especially mother’s, time use when their children attend early childcare.     

Learning from curriculum materials: Scaffolds for new teachers?

This article explores how beginning teachers use and learn from curriculum materials. As part of a longitudinal study of beginning English teachers who teach in the Pacific Northwest of the United States, the researchers tracked teachers’ responses to and use of materials over time, and how these materials shaped their classroom practice. The authors found that the teachers spent an enormous amount of time searching out curriculum materials for their classes and that the curriculum materials they encountered did, indeed, powerfully shape their ideas about teaching language arts as well as their classroom practice. Based on their findings, the authors propose a trajectory for the teachers’ use of the curriculum materials. New teachers begin by sticking close to the materials they have at hand. Then, over time, as they learn more about both students and curriculum, they adapt and adjust their use of the materials. The authors argue that new and aspiring teachers need opportunities to analyze and critique curriculum materials, beginning during teacher education and continuing in the company of their more experienced colleagues.     

Is preview benefit from word n + 2 a common effect in reading Chinese? Evidence from eye movements

Although most studies of reading English (and other alphabetic languages) have indicated that readers do not obtain preview benefit from word n + 2, Yang, Wang, Xu, and Rayner (2009) reported evidence that Chinese readers obtain preview benefit from word n + 2. However, this effect may not be common in Chinese because the character prior to the target word in Yang et al.’s experiment was always a very high frequency function word. In the current experiment, we utilized a relatively low frequency word n + 1 to examine whether an n + 2 preview benefit effect would still exist and failed to find any preview benefit from word n + 2. These results are consistent with a recent study which indicated that foveal load modulates the perceptual span during Chinese reading (Yan, Kliegl, Shu, Pan, & Zhou, 2010). Implications of these results for models of eye movement control are discussed.     

Is there room for multidimensional learning in a standardized curriculum?

This article presents the results of a study that interpreted views of curriculum and practice of teacher education faculty at a public institution of higher learning in the USA. It offers information about the ongoing challenges of affecting a balanced approach to teacher education at colleges and universities in a standardized learning setting. Participants' responses indicated professors perceive curriculum and standardization differently than instructors. Professors are more likely to describe the curriculum they teach ideologically whereas instructors described course content or paraphrased course titles. Further, professors were more likely to question whether they were meeting the needs of students and the impact of the standardization of curriculum. These findings raise many questions about the intellectual integrity of teacher preparation programs that are increasingly standardized and increasingly reliant on instructors rather than tenured faculty to teach program courses.     

Who benefits from tuition-free,top-quality universities? Evidence from Brazil

This paper investigates the long-term impact on earnings of attending a tuition-free, top-quality university in Brazil. We identify the causal effect through a sharp discontinuity in an admission process based on test scores. If admitted, low-income students are found to increase their earnings by 26% ten years later. However, admission has a small and insignificant effect on high-income students. The difference between income groups is not explained by educational attainment, program choice, or selection into better-paying jobs. The evidence suggests that most low-income applicants, if not admitted, still graduate from college but with much lower returns to education. High-income applicants who just miss the cutoff, however, can find other opportunities such that earnings trajectories are unchanged. Our results underscore the role of affordable higher education in promoting social mobility.     

How much does the quality of teaching vary at under-performing schools? Evidence from classroom observations in Chile

The present study aims to determine how much the quality of teaching varies among and within under-performing schools. 1266 classroom observations were conducted in 260 schools across Chile. An index of teaching quality was constructed to analyze its variance. It was found that only 4.8% of the variance is explained by the teacher’s school. This suggests that the variance in the quality of teaching is not among schools, but within teachers from the same school. These results are important for public policy, especially in the field of professional development, as they suggest that best practices can be found at under-performing schools.     

Who benefits from selective education? Evidence from elite boarding school admissions

Existing research finds minimal gains from attending elite US secondary schools. This paper estimates the causal effect of attending a selective public boarding school, an institutional model increasingly used by states to serve academically gifted students. Regression discontinuity estimates using multiple admissions thresholds show math score gains and college application and enrollment patterns that shift away from less competitive colleges. Effects are concentrated among minorities, students with lower prior individual achievement, from rural neighborhoods, or lower-achieving sending schools. The opportunity to attend selective boarding schools reduces the tendency of disadvantaged or under-represented students to attend a less selective college by at least one-quarter.     

Who Studies Abroad? Evidence from France and Italy

This article uses data from representative samples of university students in France and Italy in an attempt to investigate the determinants of participation in foreign exchange programmes. Empirical results indicate that selection into these programmes is mainly driven by student's academic and foreign language skills. On the other hand, parents' occupation does not seem to have any significant effect on the probability of studying abroad.     

Is child sexual abuse declining? Evidence from a population-based survey of men and women in Australia

OBJECTIVE: Substantiated cases of child sexual abuse (CSA) in the United States have declined significantly over the past decade. This may, or may not, reflect change in the underlying rate in the general population. This study examines age-cohort differences in the prevalence of self-reported CSA experiences of men and women aged 18-59 years in a community-based sample from a comparable western nation. METHOD: In April 2000, we completed a cross-sectional, telephone-based survey of a randomly selected national sample of men and women in Australia. Volunteers (876 males, 908 females) answered a range of questions about health status and sexuality, including unwanted sexual experiences before the age of 16 years. Of selected adults with publicly-listed telephone numbers, 61% agreed to participate. There were few differences between the volunteers and the Australian population on demographic variables and health indicators. RESULTS: Non-penetrative CSA was twice as common among women (33.6%) than men (15.9%). Approximately 12% of women and 4% of men reported unwanted penetrative experiences. CSA was reported significantly less often by younger males, with a linear decline from the oldest to youngest men. Among all females who had intercourse before age 16, older women were much more likely than younger women to say they were an unwilling partner on the first occasion. If first intercourse occurred at age 16 or later, there were no age-cohort differences in risk of first-time abuse. Self-reported "openness" and "comfort" during the telephone interviews was not systematically related to prevalence of CSA. CONCLUSION: These population-based findings provide evidence of a decline in the underlying rate of CSA in Australia. Although every measure of CSA inevitably is flawed to some extent, these trends in self-report complement official statistics that show substantial decline in recent years.     

Can Academics Benefit from Training? Some Preliminary Evidence

A number of recent articles in this journal, and two responses in the form of 'Points for Debate', have considered whether academics need training to support their teaching roles. This debate has been undertaken largely in the absence of evidence of the impact of training. This paper reports findings from the first stage of a study of the impact of initial training of university teachers in universities in the UK. Data from 72 teachers showed significant improvements in scores on three of the six scales of the Student Evaluation of Educational Quality (SEEQ) questionnaire after one semester of two- and three-semester long training programmes. Interpretation of this positive finding is complicated by problems with the self-selection of teachers, poor response rates and the difficulty of distinguishing the effects of training from the effects of experience of teaching. Improvements in the research design, implemented in a subsequent study, are outlined.     

Disability,the arts and the curriculum: Is there common ground?

This paper reports on the findings of a study that sought to examine firstly, the themes expressed in the art of disabled people in Greece and Cyprus and in interviews with these artists, and secondly, the ways that such art can serve the school curriculum. To this end, an electronic archive of the life stories and art of interest was analysed. The findings suggest that both the art and the interviews cover issues that are directly related to disability, and issues of general interest. A detailed analysis of two cases seeks to provide an in-depth understanding of the relevance of disabled artists and their work within the curriculum. The discussion focuses on issues emerging from the analysis, such as the potential of this art to enrich the school curriculum and promote inclusive education, and identifies the study’s contribution to the international literature about disability, the arts and the curriculum.     

Does Graduating from a Private University Make a Difference? Evidence from Italy

The main aim of this article is to explore similarities and differences in the institutional features of private and state universities in the Italian higher education system and to assess whether graduating from a private university conveys advantages in the labour market. In the first part we use administrative data to describe the main institutional features of the two types of university, looking at organisational aspects, enrolments and graduates, financial resources, tuition fees, and teachers' characteristics. In the second part we develop a theoretical framework looking at sociological and economic theories of education and labour market, from which we derive some hypotheses on the expected results. In the last part, we apply a propensity score matching analysis on data from the Italian University Graduates Survey conducted in 2007 by the Italian National Institute of Statistics, which provides information on more than 40,000 graduates who obtained their degree in 2004. The main results indicate that graduates from private universities are younger, have a higher socio-economic background and a slightly better previous school career than those from state universities. Contrary to a widespread belief, once accounted for self-selection into the type of university using a wide range of variables, graduating from a private university has neither a significant nor a substantial effect on employment probability, hourly wage and occupational level three years after graduation.     

Is Criminology Moving Toward a Paradigm Shift? Evidence from a Survey of the American Society of Criminology

Ideology impacts a number of values, beliefs, and norms across an array of domains. Relatively little research has been done in criminology exploring the relationship between ideology and theoretical orientation. This study represents not only a follow‐up of previous research exploring this relationship, but also introduces new variables exploring the extent to which biological correlates of crime are becoming more accepted in the academy. Results are gleaned from a survey given to members of the American Society of Criminology as of December 2007.