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Gains from Alternative Assignment? Evidence from a Two-Sided Teacher Market
Get PDFThe literature on assignment mechanisms largely focuses on efficiency based on agents’ preferences, though policymakers may prioritize different goals. In assigning teachers to classrooms, a school district might prioritize student learning but must also consider teacher welfare. This paper studies the potential gains in student test scores from alternative within-district assignments of teachers to classrooms, using novel administrative data on teacher and school principal decisions from the district’s internal transfer system (ITS) and student test scores under the observed assignments. To credibly predict student test scores under unrealized assignments, we jointly model student achievement and teacher and principal decisions, accounting for potential selection of teachers on test score gains. We estimate the variation in teachers’ comparative advantage in producing learning to be one-ninth the magnitude of the variation in their general effectiveness. Further, teachers dislike comparative advantage-based assignments. Assignment of teachers to classrooms to maximize learning under the constraint of not reducing any assigned teacher’s welfare would raise the average test score by 7 percent of a standard deviation (SD) relative to that under the observed assignment, with this effect driven mostly by assignment of teachers with higher general effectiveness to larger classrooms rather than by harnessing teachers’ comparative advantage
What’s the Inside Scoop? Challenges in the Supply and Demand for Information on Employers
No full textCan Diversity Improve Equity? Achieving Racial Parity in Leader Assessment of Minority Team Members
No full textIt has become increasingly clear that racial and cultural differences can lead to inequities in a variety of contexts. For example, white police officers escalate force faster in minority neighborhoods (Hoekstra and Sloan, 2022). Researchers also find racial biases in judges and juries (Arnold et al., 2018; Shayo and Zussman, 2011; Flanagan, 2018). As with other work environments, the U.S. Army has apparent inequities in performance ratings and promotions for minority soldiers. Black Army non-commissioned officers (NCOs) under the command of white officers are 20% less likely to receive the highest performance rating and 30% more likely to receive the worst. Can early-career diversity for the officer affect this disparity? Our preliminary results suggest yes, especially in restoring parity in the most negative performance rating
Employment, Income, and Poverty in Kalamazoo City Core Neighborhoods
Get PDFThis report employs a traditional methodology using American Community Survey data to examine employment, income, and poverty in three neighborhoods in Kalamazoo, Michigan: Eastside, Northside, and Edison. These neighborhoods are studied with an emphasis on eligibility status for the Distressed Area Recompete Pilot Program, administered through the U.S. Economic Development Administration. Eastside residents are unique in that a larger share earn income through wages or employment than do Michigan residents, yet their median income falls below those at the county and state levels in a statistically significant way. The Edison neighborhood is characterized by greater income inequality than the other two neighborhoods studied. Edison residents are employed at equal levels relative to county and state neighbors, but their median income lags behind these neighbors with statistical significance. The Northside neighborhood has lower rates of employment and income relative to residents of Eastside and Edison, contributing to a higher rate of poverty in this neighborhood, with these differences carrying statistical significance
The Effect of Declining U.S. Immigration on Labor Markets
No full textNet migration to the U.S. has been steadily declining and is down by 75% between 2016 and 2021. What are the consequences of declining migration to the U.S. for labor markets? Using cross-regional variation in exposure to migration, this paper documents the effect of declining migration on employment, wages, occupation, and educational outcomes in the U.S. and in migrants’ origin countries. Next, using a model of migration across labor markets, I map cross-regional estimates into aggregate outcomes and study counterfactual labor policy exercises, such as changes in visa caps and programs for temporary migration targeted to specific skill groups
Can Daddy Quotas Reduce the Gender Income Gap? Evidence from Canada
No full textIn this project, I aim to assess whether daddy quotas – parental leave periods exclusively reserved for fathers – can reduce the gender income gap. For this purpose, I propose to study the progressive introduction of daddy quotas in Canada, using a difference-in-difference strategy and administrative data on earnings. First, I plan to estimate the aggregate effect of the policy on the gender income gap. Second, to gain a deeper understanding of the underlying mechanisms, I plan to estimate the effects on men’s and women’s labor market trajectories before and after childbirth. Finally, I plan to explore whether the magnitude of the effects depends on the institutional context, and, in particular, on the childcare system in place