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The long-run effects of reducing early school tracking

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  • Canaan, Serena

Abstract

This paper studies the effects of a French detracking reform on individuals' long-run education and labor market outcomes. The reform delayed the age at which students were separated into vocational and general education by two years, from age 11 to 13. The assignment of students to different types of education at age 11 was instead replaced by ability grouping, whereby students followed a common general education curriculum but were divided into different classrooms based on their academic achievement. Using a regression discontinuity design, I find that the reform raised individuals' level of education and increased their wages by 6% at ages 40 to 45. These effects are concentrated among men and individuals from low socioeconomic backgrounds. However, the reform solely benefited individuals whose parents were born in France, as it did not significantly affect children of immigrants' educational and labor market outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Canaan, Serena, 2020. "The long-run effects of reducing early school tracking," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 187(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:pubeco:v:187:y:2020:i:c:s0047272720300700
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2020.104206
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    Cited by:

    1. Colin Green & Ole Henning Nyhus & Kari Vea Salvanes, "undated". "How does testing young children influence educational attainment and well-being?," Working Paper Series 19422, Department of Economics, Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
    2. Celeste K. Carruthers & Christopher Jepsen, 2020. "Vocational Education: An International Perspective," CESifo Working Paper Series 8718, CESifo.
    3. Maria Zumbuehl & Nihal Chehber & Rik Dillingh, 2022. "Can skill differences explain the gap in the track recommendation by socio-economic status?," CPB Discussion Paper 439, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis.
    4. Bach, Maximilian & Fischer, Mira, 2020. "Understanding the response to high-stakes incentives in primary education," ZEW Discussion Papers 20-066, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    5. Valentina Sontheim, 2024. "Locked-in vs. Locked-out: Can Detracked Classes Increase Education Equality?," Economics of Education Working Paper Series 0229, University of Zurich, Department of Business Administration (IBW).
    6. Aderonke Osikominu & Gregor Pfeifer & Kristina Strohmaier & Gregor-Gabriel Pfeifer, 2021. "The Effects of Free Secondary School Track Choice: A Disaggregated Synthetic Control Approach," CESifo Working Paper Series 8879, CESifo.
    7. BAI Yu & TANAKA Ryuichi, 2024. "A Long-run Consequence of Relaxation-Oriented Education on Labor Market Performance," Discussion papers 24003, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    8. Takaku, Reo & Yokoyama, Izumi, 2021. "What the COVID-19 school closure left in its wake: Evidence from a regression discontinuity analysis in Japan," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 195(C).
    9. Elisabeth Grewenig, 2021. "School Track Decisions and Teacher Recommendations: Evidence from German State Reforms," ifo Working Paper Series 353, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich.
    10. Serena Canaan, 2024. "The Impact of Delaying Early School Tracking on Fertility and Marriage Outcomes," Upjohn Working Papers 24-403, W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.
    11. Bellés-Obrero, Cristina & Duchini, Emma, 2021. "Who benefits from general knowledge?," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    12. Grätz, Michael & Heers, Marieke, 2023. "Tracking in Context: Variation in the Effects of Reforms in the Age at Tracking on Educational Mobility," SocArXiv f5uzg, Center for Open Science.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Tracking; Returns to education; School quality;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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