The Education Policy Initiative (EPI) is a program within the Ford School that brings together nationally-recognized education policy scholars focused on the generation and dissemination of policy-relevant education research.
Abstract: Accountability programs, including the one implemented by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, operate under the assumption that schools are inefficient -- that is, that schools can provide higher quality education without investing additional resources. These programs seek to make schools more efficient by using incentives. The state of North Carolina currently operates two independent incentive systems for public schools.
Free and open to the public Teach For America (TFA) is an important but controversial source of teachers for hard-to-staff subjects in high-poverty U.S. schools. We present findings from the first large-scale experimental study of secondary math teachers from TFA. We find that TFA teachers are more effective than other math teachers in the same schools, increasing student math achievement by 0.07 standard deviations over one school year.
Causal Inference in Education Research Seminar (CIERS)
Sarah Cohodes will present work with Elizabeth Setren and Chris Walters titled "Can Successful Schools Replicate? Scaling Up Boston’s Charter School Sector."AbstractIn a climate of school turnarounds, charter school conversions, and new school openings, an important question is whether schools that boost student outcomes can reproduce their success at new campuses. We study a policy reform that allowed effective charter schools in Boston, Massachusetts to replicate their school models at new locations. Estimates based on randomized admission lotteries show that replicate charter schools generate large achievement gains on par with those produced by their parent campuses. The average effectiveness of Boston’s charter middle school sector increased after the reform despite a doubling of charter market share.
Causal Inference in Education Research Seminar (CIERS)
A presentation by Carrie Xu, PhD student in Economics and Information on peer effects in a field experiment followed by a presentation by Ben Alcott, PhD student in Education, on whether progress assessments hinder equitable progress
Causal Inference in Education Research Seminar (CIERS)
About CIERS The objective of the Causal Inference in Education Research Seminar (CIERS) is to engage students and faculty from across the university in conversations around education research using various research methodologies. This seminar provides a space for doctoral students and faculty from the School of Education, Ford School of Public Policy, and the Departments of Economics, Sociology, Statistics, and Political Science to discuss current research and receive feedback on works-in-progress.
Causal Inference in Education Research Seminar (CIERS)
