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Secondary Schools and Teenage Childbearing : Evidence from the School Expansion in Brazilian Municipalities

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  • Koppensteiner,Martin Foureaux
  • Matheson,Jesse

Abstract

This article investigates the effect increasing secondary education opportunities has on teenage fertility in Brazil. Using a novel dataset to exploit variation from a 57 increase in secondary schools across 4,884 Brazilian municipalities between 1997 and 2009, the analysis shows an important role of secondary school availability on underage fertility. An increase of one school per 100 females reduces a cohort's teenage birthrate by between 0.250 and 0.563 births per 100, or a reduction of one birth for roughly every 50 to 100 students who enroll in secondary education. The results highlight the important role of access to education leading to spillovers beyond improving educational attainment.

Suggested Citation

  • Koppensteiner,Martin Foureaux & Matheson,Jesse, 2020. "Secondary Schools and Teenage Childbearing : Evidence from the School Expansion in Brazilian Municipalities," Policy Research Working Paper Series 9420, The World Bank.
  • Handle: RePEc:wbk:wbrwps:9420
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    Cited by:

    1. Garcez, Lucas N. & Padilla-Romo, María & Peluffo, Cecilia & Pineda-Torres, Mayra, 2024. "Improvements in Schooling Opportunities and Teen Births," IZA Discussion Papers 16791, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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