School Fixed-effects Research Articles

School composition and academic decisions

Abstract Research on the effects of school composition tends to focus on how it shapes school achievement. In this study, we instead examine how school composition shapes children’s educational aspirations, given their achievement, and if children from different socio-economic backgrounds are affected differently. We apply school-fixed effects on Swedish register data, including all 9th-grade students from 2013 to 2017. Being exposed to a high share of low-achieving schoolmates increases the likelihood of applying for academics instead of vocational tracking across socio-economic backgrounds. In contrast, the share of high-achieving schoolmates is negatively associated with academic tracking only for high-SES children. Being exposed to peers with highly educated parents increases the likelihood of applying for academic tracking for low-SES children, whereas the effect is weaker or even negative for some of the high-SES groups. Together, our results suggest that the academic decisions of both high- and low-SES children could benefit from a less segregated school environment.

STEM Pathway and College Progression: The Link Between Engineering CTE and Postsecondary Outcomes for Students With Learning Disabilities

Despite growing calls to increase diversity in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields, students with learning disabilities (SWLDs) remain underrepresented in STEM at the postsecondary level. Considering this call for increased diversity as a means to expand and strengthen STEM success, we used the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 to explore how participation in engineering career and technical education (E-CTE) links to postsecondary educational outcomes for SWLDs. Particularly, we examined how E-CTE participation relates to postsecondary remedial course taking, enrollment in a 4-year postsecondary institution, and declaration of a STEM major. Results from school fixed-effects estimations suggest that each credit of E-CTE earned is associated with fewer remedial college courses, a higher likelihood of enrolling in a 4-year as opposed to sub-baccalaureate institution, and increased odds of declaring a STEM major. To conclude, we discuss the implications of our findings for both policymakers and practitioners.

Teaching quality and student reading outcomes: Evidence from a longitudinal study from grade 5 to 7

The literature on the effects of teaching behavior on student competence and motivation has primarily focused on single teaching facets, with limited attention to multiple components simultaneously. To address this gap, this study examined a model of teaching and learning by investigating 10 teaching quality components reported by both students and teachers. The study used a sample of 3067 students in 150 schools in Germany and regressed reading competence and attitudes towards reading in grade 7 on these 10 variables. The study controlled for prior reading competence and attitudes towards reading in grade 5, as well as other student background characteristics, and estimated school-fixed effects. The results did not identify significant associations between the investigated teaching quality components and the reading competence and attitudes towards reading measures when considered simultaneously in one model, after taking into account previous competence and attitudes. The study discusses limitations and implications of these findings.

Transitioning to Success: The Link between E-CTE and College Preparation for Students with Learning Disabilities in the United States

In recent years, there has been a specific call to not only increase the number of engineering-trained individuals but also to address the lack of diversity in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields, including individuals with disabilities. In particular, students with learning disabilities (SWLDs) make up a large portion of all students and are, therefore, a crucial population on which to focus educational and career progression efforts. One potential means of promoting persistence along the STEM pipeline—engineering specifically—is through engineering career and technical education (E-CTE) coursework in high school. Using a nationally representative dataset, we explore how E-CTE participation links to college preparation and transition activities for SWLDs, including math SAT performance, dual credit course participation, college application, and FAFSA completion. Under our more rigorous school fixed-effects models, we find that E-CTE participation is associated with beneficial results across each of our outcomes. The implications are discussed.

The relationship between overweight and education revisited: a test of the selection hypothesis based on adolescents’ educational aspirations

ObjectivesThis paper examines the selection mechanism underlying the association between overweight/obesity and educational aspirations of adolescents. Study designThis is a cross-sectional study based on a survey conducted in secondary schools in Spain in 2016. MethodsWe estimate linear probability models to determine the association between adolescents’ body mass index (BMI) and their expectations to obtain a university degree, as well as their school choices representing the most usual path towards higher studies. To address the potential endogeneity of BMI, we use the instrumental variables (IV) method. Additionally, we account for potential unobserved heterogeneity by including school fixed-effects and a wide set of individual and family characteristics in our analysis. ResultsOur results indicate that adolescents with a higher BMI have lower expectations to obtain a university degree and are less likely to enrol in high school with the intention to pursue higher education in the future. The estimated effect is quite sizable and statistically significant only for girls. We estimate that a five-unit increase in BMI (e.g., the change between healthy weight and overweight) reduces girls’ expectations to complete higher education by 19 percentage points and odds of enrolling in high school (vs. vocational training) by 21 percentage points. ConclusionsWe provide empirical evidence supporting the selection hypothesis behind the relationship between BMI and adolescents’ educational aspirations. That is, unhealthy weight in adolescence is associated with poorer aspirations for further education. Lower educational aspirations during adolescence can lead to lower academic achievement, which in turn, may result in poorer health, labour market outcomes, and well-being during adulthood.

Linkage Between Fields of Focus in High School Career Technical Education and College Majors

This study examines the extent to which students obtain postsecondary credentials in the career technical education (CTE) fields of focus they choose in high school. Using school fixed-effects models, we find that focusing on a particular CTE field in high school is associated with an increased probability of enrolling and obtaining a postsecondary credential in that field. The secondary–postsecondary relationship varies across focus areas, and it is strongest in health (increase of 12.5 percentage points), which is disproportionately chosen by females. Across all fields of focus, however, most students enroll and obtain a postsecondary credential in fields that are different from what they focused on in high school.

Connected networks in principal value-added models

A growing literature uses value-added (VA) models to quantify principals’ contributions to improving student outcomes. Principal VA is typically estimated using a connected networks model that includes both principal and school fixed effects (FE) to isolate principal effectiveness from fixed school factors that principals cannot control. While conceptually appealing, high-dimensional FE regression models require sufficient variation to produce accurate VA estimates. Using simulation methods applied to administrative data from Tennessee and New York City, we show that limited mobility of principals among schools yields connected networks that are extremely sparse, where VA estimates are either highly localized or statistically unreliable. When comparing principals across schools, employing a random effects shrinkage estimator is shown to alleviate estimation error to increase the reliability of principal VA in our simulations. For within-school rankings of principals, VA estimates from models with both principal-by-school FE and school FE perform best.

The Dice Are Loaded: Schools’ Social Class Composition and Athletic Contests

Research shows that social class differences in high school sports participation are large and growing. However, focusing on sports participation may obfuscate large social class differences in sports performance among participants. The authors develop theoretical predictions on the basis of exclusion (middle-class youth perform sports better) and inclusion (working-class youth perform sports better). To test these predictions, the authors analyze the relationship between high schools’ social class composition and success in high school athletics using data on more than 200,000 contests in school fixed-effects models. The findings indicate that predominantly middle-class schools beat economically integrated and predominantly working-class schools by large margins, supporting exclusivity perspectives. Also, predominantly working-class schools win as much as economically integrated schools, providing evidence of inclusion, but inclusion is much weaker than exclusion. The authors conclude that sports performance among youth is highly stratified by social class.

The (Unequal) Interplay Between Cognitive and Noncognitive Skills in Early Educational Attainment

Cognitive and noncognitive skills are key indicators of educational success and merit. However, even when accounting for inequalities in skill formation by family socioeconomic status (SES), a wide SES-gap in college enrolment remains. According to the compensatory advantage hypothesis, SES-gaps in educational transitions are largest among cognitively weak students, but little is known on mechanisms. It has long been argued that noncognitive traits such as effort and motivation might be at least as important as cognitive skills over the status-attainment process, and these skills might interact by being complements or substitutes. Thus, I test whether advantaged students substitute low cognitive skills in test scores by high returns to conscientiousness—rated by teachers— in the transition to academic secondary schools. I draw data from the German National Educational Panel Study to study a cohort of students from Grades 1 to 5, when early tracking is enforced. I estimate linear probability models with school fixed-effects and moderation. To account for measurement error, I also use composite latent skills across elementary education. I report three main findings: (a) High-SES students at the same level of cognitive and noncognitive skills than low-SES schoolmates are more likely to attend the academic track bridged to college; (b) in line with the compensatory hypothesis, these SES-inequalities are largest among low cognitive performers; (3) cognitively weak students from high-SES families get the highest educational returns to conscientiousness in comparison to high cognitive performers or low-SES peers, validating the skill substitution hypothesis. These findings challenge the liberal conception of merit as the sum of ability plus effort in assessing equal opportunity in education.

Equity in Career Development of High School Students in South Korea: The Role of School Career Education

Along with the rising concerns of career education in school, the government in South Korea has increased investments for closing the opportunity gap in career education. However, limited studies explored the equity in students’ outcomes of career education. Focusing on career development competencies, we examined if school career education could reduce the socio-economic disparities in the career development of high school students. We used the ordinary least squares (OLS) regression applying school-fixed effects with the representative data from the Korean Education and Employment Panel II. Findings showed that parental education level was positively linked to career development competencies of high school students, though household income was not shown as statistically significant. We also found that for students who engaged in career and vocational classes in school, the parental education level was less likely to be related to their career development competencies. Also, students who were more satisfied with school career education showed a weaker relationship between career development competencies and parental education level. Based on these findings, we discussed the role of school-based career education to narrow the gap in students’ career development from socio-economic backgrounds.

Decoupled or doubled? Evaluating geospatial dispersion of student-resident displacement by school closure

School closures can have negative impacts on the students attending them and the residential communities surrounding them, suggesting overlapping negative impacts on local children. Yet, it remains unclear that these two populations are one in the same. The current study uses administrative enrollment data from 18 public-school closures in Baltimore City (2010–15) to quantify student-resident displacement rates across neighborhoods. I find that closures displaced a small proportion of student-residents from many different neighborhoods, rather than displacing a large proportion of any one residential community. Displaced students’ residential neighborhoods are spatially dispersed and socio-demographically diverse. Employing school fixed-effects modeling to compare displaced students with their classmates, I show how recognizing these variations in geospatial dispersion can help to predict post-closure enrollments among displaced students. Findings suggest that many students and neighborhoods experience school closure as decoupled rather than doubled, with implications for how policies can better mitigate impacts of school closure.

Supporting gender-inclusive schools: educators’ beliefs about gender diversity training and implementation plans

ABSTRACT Transgender and gender-expansive students are disproportionately at risk for a host of negative academic and health outcomes; yet, few educators receive training on gender-inclusive school practices. This descriptive study used evaluation survey data from employees (N = 1,425) across 80 schools participating in gender-inclusivity professional development sessions. Using a mixed-methods approach, we assessed educators’ beliefs about the need and relevance of the training, capacity to improve learning environments, intended implementation of strategies, and suggestions for future trainings. We examined outcomes using descriptive statistics and assessed the educators’ roles using regression analyses with- and without school fixed-effects. Our results showed educators wanted even more training on gender diversity and believed the professional development provided was useful and relevant. They reported having increased capacity to create a safe educational environment and discuss gender issues with others in their school environment. We found differences by educators’ roles in schools and across schools in how capable educators felt in engaging parents, relevance to self, and usefulness. Future trainings and research should address these differences. The findings from this study provide a description of educators’ responses to gender-diversity trainings from 80 schools, highlighting the broad relevance of and need for educator gender-diversity professional development.

Student participation in private supplementary education: A comparative analysis of Japan, Korea, Shanghai, and the USA

Private supplementary education, which refers to private lessons and learning outside of formal schooling purchased by families, has been widely practiced in East Asia. Its demand has grown even beyond East Asia, however, as educational competition for social mobility has intensified in many parts of the world. This global trend makes it important to determine who has greater access to private supplementary education and address the implications of the differential access for educational inequality. The current study compares how family socioeconomic status (SES) and students’ prior academic performance are related to their participation in private supplementary education in three East Asian societies—Japan, Korea, and Shanghai (China)—and the USA. Private supplementary education has existed on a substantial scale in Japan and Korea. The public and scholars have increased their concerns regarding the growing prevalence of private supplementary education in China. Although it has not been a major educational strategy, the demand for private supplementary education is rising in the USA as well, which can offer a useful insight into the global application of private supplementary education in contemporary educational systems. The focused comparisons across a small number of societies allow analyses of detailed patterns in each society in comparative perspective, thus moving beyond both single-country research and large-scale cross-national studies. The data for the current study come from 15-year-old students who participated in an international survey of student achievement, Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2012. With a clearly defined measure of private supplementary education, PISA 2012 provides an exceptional opportunity for comparison. Drawing on data for 15-year-old students in four societies from PISA 2012, the linear probability models highlight heterogeneity among three East Asian societies. Japan is distinctive from Korea and Shanghai in terms of the influences of family SES on student participation in private supplementary education. Once school-fixed effects are taken into account, the strength of the relationship between family SES and private supplementary education in Japan is similar to the strength in the USA, which is weaker than the strength in Korea and Shanghai. Japan and the USA are also similar in that family structure is not significantly associated with private supplementary education, while students in non-two-parent families are significantly less likely to receive private supplementary education in Korea and Shanghai. The school-fixed-effects models also show that the within-school relationship between students’ prior academic performance and their participation in private supplementary education is generally negative. Japan, Shanghai, and the USA show a significantly negative relationship, while only Korea shows no significant relationship. Future research directions are suggested in the conclusion.

Longitudinal Evaluation of Aerobic Fitness and Academic Achievement Among Schoolchildren.

Research is emerging suggesting that fitness not only improves health, but enhances academic achievement in children. Many studies have found the strongest correlation with academic achievement to be aerobic fitness. The purpose of this study is to examine the influence of aerobic fitness and academic ranking on the association between improvements in students' aerobic fitness and their academic achievement. Data were collected from 1152 second- through fifth-grade students enrolled in 10 Midwestern schools. School-fixed effects models were used to estimate the impact of improved aerobic fitness from the fall to the spring semester on students' spring percentile rankings in math and reading. Students whose progressive aerobic cardiovascular endurance run improved from the fall to spring semester moved up the national spring math percentile rankings by 2.71 percentiles (p < .001) for all students, 4.77 (p < .001) for less-fit students, and 3.53 (p < .05) for lower performing math students. No statistically significant relationship was found between improved aerobic fitness and reading achievement. Improving fitness could potentially have the greatest academic benefit for those elementary students who need it the most-the less fit and the lower academic performers.

Do School Discipline Policies Treat Students Fairly? A Second Look At School Discipline Rate Disparities

According to a 2014 report from the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, Black students represent only 15% of students across the nation, but 35% of students suspended once are Black, 44% of students suspended more than once are Black, and 36% of expelled students are Black. While these disparate disciplinary outcomes at the aggregate level are troubling, more information is needed if we are to develop a full understanding of the problem of disproportionate discipline. In particular, consequences should be attached to specific infractions and school level data are necessary to help us decipher the extent to which students in the same schools are being treated differently for the same ostensible infractions. In this study, we exploit three years of student-level discipline data from Arkansas and find that Black students received more severe punishments than White students for the same infractions across the state. These differences were due, in large part, to school-level differences in disciplinary patterns. However, even after controlling for infraction and school-fixed effects, Black students received slightly longer punishments than their White peers in the same schools.

Peer Effects and Youth Smoking in the European Global Youth Tobacco Survey

Abstract This paper investigates the effect of peer smoking on individual smoking among youths in 10 countries that participated in the European Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS). I control for endogeneity in school selection and unobserved school-level characteristics through the use of school fixed-effects. I use instrumental variables to address the simultaneity in peer and individual behaviours. Identification arises by comparing students in different classes within the same school. On average, an increase in the share of classmates who smoke by 10 percentage points increases the probability that an individual in that class will smoke by 3 to 6.9 percentage points. The results imply that any policy intervention such as anti-smoking messages, smoking bans, or higher cigarette prices will be even more cost-effective because of the social multiplier effect of peers – policies affecting some individuals in a group will generate spillovers to others through the peer effect.

The effects of summer heat on academic achievement: A cohort analysis

This paper analyzed the effect of summer heat on academic achievement. Summer heat can negatively affect student learning, as previous studies have shown that high temperatures in laboratory settings have a negative effect on cognitive abilities. For this analysis, the test scores of five different cohorts were combined with city-level daily temperature data. To control for unobserved heterogeneity, the test scores of students within the same school were compared over time (school-fixed effects estimation). Summer heat negatively affected student test scores. Specifically, an additional day with a maximum daily temperature exceeding 34°C (93.2°F) during the summer, relative to a day with a maximum temperature between 28°C (82.4°F) and 30°C (86°F), decreased the scores of math and English tests by 0.0042 and 0.0064 standard deviations, respectively. No significant effects were found on the reading test scores. In addition, these effects were larger in relatively cooler cities, but did not differ based on gender. Finally, the previous year's summer also had negative effects on the current year's test scores.

The more the heavier? Family size and childhood obesity in the U.S

Childhood obesity remains a top public health concern and understanding its drivers is important for combating this epidemic. Contemporaneous trends in declining family size and increasing childhood obesity in the U.S. suggest that family size may be a potential contributor, but limited evidence exists. Using data from a national sample of children in the U.S. this study examines whether family size, measured by the number of siblings a child has, is associated with child BMI and obesity, and the possible mechanisms at work. The potential endogeneity of family size is addressed by using several complementary approaches including sequentially introducing of a rich set of controls, subgroup analyses, and estimating school fixed-effects and child fixed-effects models. Results suggest that having more siblings is associated with significantly lower BMI and lower likelihood of obesity. Children with siblings have healthier diets and watch less television. Family mealtimes, less eating out, reduced maternal work, and increased adult supervision of children are potential mechanisms through which family size is protective of childhood obesity.

Interpersonal influences on educational expectations: New evidence for Germany

Previous research casts doubt on whether interpersonal influences on students’ expectations exist in highly stratified education systems after students have been tracked into different secondary school types. Against this background, we examine the influence of parents and friends on the educational expectations of secondary school students in the highly stratified German education system. For the analyses we use unique representative data from the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS). In addition to standard cross-sectional analyses, school fixed-effects models and longitudinal fixed-effects panel regressions are conducted, which make it possible to rule out a large number of factors that might be responsible for a spurious relationship. Across all analyses, we consistently find substantive influences of parents and friends on the expectations of secondary school students.

How the Mexican drug war affects kids and schools? Evidence on effects and mechanisms

We investigate the impact of drug-related violence in Mexico on academic achievement. We use panel of elementary and lower secondary schools and locality-level firearm homicides from 2006 to 2011. We rely on school fixed-effects models to estimate the impact on math test scores of turf war exposure and turf war persistence (e.g. months of exposure) during the academic year. According to the results, both exposure and persistence of criminal violence reduces math test scores. The analysis of heterogeneous effects shows that schools located in poor urban settings experience the largest negative effects. Further, we find stronger negative effects of drug-related violence exposure in lower secondary schools with street gang presence nearby. Finally, we further examine potential mechanisms driving the effects of criminal violence on test scores. Our findings indicate that turf war exposure and persistence are associated with a loss of instructional time due to higher teacher absenteeism and turnover, as well as student absenteeism, tardiness, and propensity to leave school days early.