2009

WORKING PAPER 2009-12

 Effects of the California High School Exit Exam on Student Persistence, Achievement, and Graduation.  Sean F. Reardon, Stanford University, Allison Atteberry, Stanford University, Nicole Arshan, Stanford University, Michal Kurlaender, University of California Davis, April, 2009.

This study, released April 21, 2009, provides the most detailed analysis of the effects of the California High School Exit Exam to date.  The study finds that the policy has lowered the graduation rates of low-achieving students of color and of girls by 15-20 percentage points.  Moreover, the policy has had no positive effect on students' academic achievement.   

2008 

WORKING PAPER 2008-11

 Measures of Ordinal Segregation  Sean F. Reardon, Stanford University, December, 2008. 

This paper develops a general approach to constructing measures of segregation when either the groups or organizational units are defined by ordered categories.  These methods allow the measurement of segregation among groups defined by ordered educational attainment categories or among ordered occupational categories, for example. 

WORKING PAPER 2008-10

 High Stakes, No Effects: Effects of Failing the California High School Exit Exam.  Sean F. Reardon, Stanford University, Nicole Arshan, Stanford University, Allison Atteberry, Stanford University, Michal Kurlaender, University of California Davis, October, 2008. 

This study uses student‐level longitudinal data from four large California public school districts and a regression discontinuity
design to estimate the effect of failing a high school exit exam in 10th grade on subsequent student achievement, persistence in high school, and graduation.

WORKING PAPER 2008-09

 Teacher Preparation and Student Achievement  Dan Boyd, University of Albany, Pam Grossman, Stanford University, Hamp Lankford, University of Albany, Susanna Loeb, Stanford University, Jim Wyckoff, University of Virginia, August, 2008. 

Lack of evidence creates the opportunity for a myriad of potential "solutions" regarding teacher preparation and little way to evaluate their promise.  This study is a first step towards developing evidence to inform these debates, looking carefully at the ways in which teachers are prepared and the consequences of that preparation for pupil learning. 

WORKING PAPER 2008-08

 Thirteen ways of Looking at the Black-White Test Score Gap  Sean F. Reardon, Stanford University, May, 2008.

This paper uses data from a nationally representative sample of children enrolled in kindergarten in the fall of 1998 to describe the patterns and development of black-white test score disparities through the first six years of children's schooling, to examine the extent to which these gaps grow differently among initially high- and low-achieving students, and to describe the extent to which these gaps grow among students attending the same or different schools.   

WORKING PAPER 2008-07

   Differential Growth in the Black-White Achievement Gap During Elementary School Among Initially High- and Low-Scoring Students.  Sean F. Reardon, Stanford University, March, 2008. 

This paper uses data from a nationally representative sample of children enrolled in kindergarten in the fall of 1998 to examine the extent to which black-white test score gaps grow differently among initially high- and low- achieving students. 

WORKING PAPER 2008-06

 Effect of Catholic schooling on math and reading development in kindergarten through fifth grade.  Sean F. Reardon, Stanford University, Jacob E. Cheadle, University of Nebraska Lincoln, & Joseph P. Robinson, Stanford University, March, 2008.

Prior research estimating the effect of Catholic schooling has focused on high school, where evidence suggests a positive effect of Catholic versus public schooling.  In this paper, we estimate the effect of attending a Catholic elementary school rather than a public school on the math and reading skills of children in kindergarten through fifth grade.

WORKING PAPER 2008-05

 Ruminations on Reinventing on R&D Capacity for Educational Improvement.  Anthony S. Bryk, Stanford University & Louis Gomez, Northwestern University, January, 2008.

WORKING PAPER 2008-04

 Measuring Change in the Instructional Practices of Literacy Teachers.  Anthony Bryk, Stanford University, David Kerbow, University of Chicago, Gay Su Pinnell, The Ohio State University, Emily Rodgers, The Ohio State University, Carrie Hung, The Ohio State University, Patricia L. Scharer, The Ohio State University, Ireme Fountas, Lesley University & Emily Dexter, Lesley University, March, 2008

WORKING PAPER 2008-03

 The State Role in Teacher Professional Development and Education throughout Teachers' Careers.  Susanna Loeb, Stanford University, Luke C. Miller, Stanford University, & Katherine O. Strunk, Stanford University, January, 2008. 

Given that state governments can play such a wide variety of roles in the provision and funding of teacher education programs for teachers, it is worth exploring what states are currently doing, and any existing evidence regarding the effectiveness of professional development policies.  This policy brief summarizes the policy approaches of all 50 states and the District of Columbia, drawing from an extensive technical report.  

WORKING PAPER 2008-02

 The State Role in Teacher Compensation Susanna Loeb, Stanford University, Luke C. Miller, Stanford University, & Katherine O. Strunk, Stanford University, January, 2008. 

This policy brief examines the state role in these three components of total K-12 teacher compensation-- base salary, benefits, and other incentives-- showing how states across the country are going beyond simple salary structures to compensate teachers.    

WORKING PAPER 2008-01
 The Hispanic-White Achievement Gap in Math and Reading in the Elementary Grades. Sean F. Reardon, Stanford University, & Claudia Galindo, The Johns Hopkins University, January, 2008.

The authors provide a detailed descriptive analysis of the development of Hispanic-White math and reading achievement gaps in elementary school, with particular attention to variation in these patterns among Hispanic subgroups.  The report draws on  kindergarten through fifth grade test score data from a nationally-representative sample of students who were in kindergarten the fall of 1998.

2007

WORKING PAPER 2007-04
 Who Sits on School Boards in California? Jason A. Grissom, Harry S Truman School Public Affairs, University of Missouri-Columbia, December, 2007.

This report describes California’s school board members, including their demographic characteristics, education levels, ideology and experience. It also examines how these characteristics differ for urban, suburban and rural school districts.  The author draws on a survey, including a stratified random sample representative of school board members across California, conducted between January and August 2006. 

WORKING PAPER 2007-03
 What Do Cost Functions Tell Us About the Cost of an Adequate Education?
Robert Costrell, University of Arkansas, Eric Hanushek, Stanford University, Susanna Loeb, Stanford University, (conference paper for From Equity to Adequacy to Choice:  Perspectives on School Finance and School Finance Litigation) November 13, 2007.

The authors review the econometric cost function technique and provide evidence that draws into question the usefulness of the cost function approach in school finance studies for estimating the cost of an adequate education.

WORKING PAPER 2007-02
   Who Leaves? Teacher Attrition and Student Achievement. Don Boyd, University at Albany, Pam Grossman, Stanford University, Hamp Lankford, University at Albany, Susanna Loeb, Stanford University, & Jim Wyckoff, University at Albany, September 30, 2007

The authors generate estimates of novice teachers’ value-added to student test score gains in New York City (NYC) and assess the relative effectiveness of teachers who stay in their original school, transfer within NYC, transfer to another New York State (NYS) district, or leave teaching in NYS public schools. The authors pay particular attention to attrition patterns in lower-scoring schools and, for the teachers in these schools who transfer within the NYC public system, differences between the schools to which the relatively more and less effective teachers transfer.

WORKING PAPER 2007-01
   The Narrowing Gap in New York City Teacher Qualifications and its Implications for Student Achieveme Donald Boyd, University at Albany, Hamilton Lankford, University at Albany, Susanna Loeb, Stanford University, Jonah Rockoff, Columbia University, & James Wyckoff, University at Albany. August, 2007.

This paper examines changes in the distribution of teachers across schools in recent years and the implications of these changes for students.  The authors examine three questions: (1) how has the distribution of teaching qualifications between schools with concentrations of poor students and those with more affluent students changed over the last five years; (2) what effects are the changes in observed teacher qualifications likely to have on student achievement; and (3), what implications do these findings have for improving policies and programs aimed at recruiting highly effective teachers?