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Title: Essays on Teacher Supply and Quality, and School Quality: Evidence from the United States and the Philippines

Citation Type: Dissertation/Thesis

Publication Year: 2002

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Abstract: The dissertation is comprised of two loosely related essays in the economics of education. An extensive literature of education production function studies offers mixed evidence on the effects of school inputs on student performance in both developed and developing countries. The first chapter addresses two aspects in this literature. Quantile regressions are applied to Philippine data to estimate the differential impact of inputs on students at various points on the conditional achievement distribution, that is, at points other than the mean. Variation in the students who attend public schools outside their "barangay" (district) of residence, students who do not attend the nearest school, and students who transferred schools are used to identify these differential impacts and control for selection. Results suggest that a policy of reducing student to teacher ratios will have a positive effect on raising students' math achievement, but may also benefit high achievers more than the average or low achievers. In contrast, the impact of class size reductions on English achievement may impact the average or median student more relative to the tails. Given that teachers constitute a major input in education production, the second chapter explores the impact of the expansion in professional opportunities that American women faced on teacher supply and teacher quality. Data for the analyses include one-percent census samples from 1940 to 1990, three National Longitudinal Surveys, and the CIRP Freshman Surveys. Using standardized test scores, undergraduate institution selectivity, and positive assortative mating characteristics as measures of quality, evidence of a marked decline in the quality of young women going into teaching is documented. In contrast, the quality of young women becoming professionals increased. The more teachers are paid relative to professionals, the more likely educated women are to choose to teach. When wage opportunities in teaching become relatively less attractive, the quality of teachers and prospective teachers declines. These results are robust to fixed effects and difference strategies, as well as to the use of instrumental variables. Results suggest that the driving force leading to these changes are demand-side shocks, including industrial shocks that favored skilled individuals and women.

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Authors: Bacolod, Marigee

Institution: University of California, Los Angeles

Department: Economics

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Degree: Doctor of Philosophy

Publisher Location: Los Angeles, CA

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Data Collections: IPUMS USA

Topics: Education, Labor Force and Occupational Structure

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