Full Citation
Title: Experimental Evidence on the Effect of Childhood Investments on Postsecondary Attainment and Degree Completion
Citation Type: Journal Article
Publication Year: 2013
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Abstract: This paper examines the effect of early childhood investments on college enrollment and degree completion. We used the random assignment in Project STAR (the Tennessee Student/Teacher Achievement Ratio experiment) to estimate the effect of smaller classes in primary school on college entry, college choice, and degree completion. We improve on existing work in this area with unusually detailed data on college enrollment spells and the previously unexplored outcome of college degree completion. We found that assignment to a small class increases students' probability of attending college by 2.7percentage points, with effects more than twice as large among black students. Among students enrolled in the poorest third of schools, the effect is 7.3percentage points. Smaller classes increased the likelihood of earning a college degree by 1.6percentage points and shifted students toward high-earning fields such as STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), business, and economics. We found that test-score effects at the time of the experiment were an excellent predictor of long-term improvements in postsecondary outcomes.
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Authors: Dynarski, Susan; Schanzenbach, Diane; Hyman, Joshua
Periodical (Full): Journal of Policy Analysis and Management
Issue: 4
Volume: 32
Pages: 692-717
Data Collections: IPUMS USA
Topics: Education
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