scispace - formally typeset
Open AccessReport SeriesDOI

Educational Reform, Ability, and Family Background

Costas Meghir, +1 more
- 02 May 2004 - 
- Vol. 95, Iss: 1, pp 414-424
TLDR
In this paper, the authors evaluate the impact of a major school reform, that took place in the 1950s in Sweden, on educational attainment and earnings, and find that the reform increased both the educational attainment, and the earnings of children whose fathers had just compulsory education.
Abstract: 
In this paper we evaluate the impact of a major school reform, that took place in the 1950s in Sweden, on educational attainment and earnings. The reform, which has many common elements with reforms in other European countries including the UK, consisted of increasing compulsor schooling, imposing a national curriculum and abolishing selection by ability into Academic and non-academic streams at the age of 12 (comprehensive school reform). Our data combines survey data with administrative sources. We find that the reform increased both the educational attainment and the earnings of children whose fathers had just compulsory education. However the earnings of those with educated parents declined - possibly because of a dilution of quality at the top end of the education levels. The overall effect of the reform was however positive.

read more

Content maybe subject to copyright    Report

EDUCATIONAL REFORM, ABILITY AND
FAMILY BACKGROUND
Costas Meghir
Mårten Palme
THE INSTITUTE FOR FISCAL STUDIES
WP04/10
    

 
  
  

           
           
          
   !"     
    #  # #  $%
  %      & ' 
( )  #      *
+     #      %
         , 
       % # # 
  -          .
    
/ ,& & &0 1&2 13
/ , 4    5 4%
  4   $ 6 6%
  6.
*      % 6 4 1 $ 1 $
)7 $ $ 89 5 8 : 6 4 6
1 , ; # < < 1 ) 1 :% 
9
)  5
8#  4 # = > >       
       ,# !      !
 8 4 4# ? !@  !  #   $%
   !    5       
!    A =      6 
 !  ;#       < ? 
+     4   5 4 < 
+    54   4=?   =    4   
   #  6     
  =   6   ! 4 : ;
 : *4 B8 !" %/ 4<C
6    !  %B    %/
<?C
 
         ! "! " !
# !" $  !  "   "!  $
!"   !" $  !% "!"!    
  $  " $   !   "    
&'( ) $ !" "!   *+ ,"   -".
"!(
/   . 0"!  .!  " $ !" $
"!      "  ! .! .  
 $  $ " "  "$!  1" $  " 
 "2  " 1"(
 - # !" $      ( 3
  $  $   ' " "! "  
$  45 '   "     ""  2
""  $   ((    65  "'   
!% "!"!!( , .!  $ .  ". $! $
 $     " " )   7
   "    ! " !"(
3  $  .! "     .  ! 
! $ *- ! " . )  "   "  .
 "! "   " !     " 
!"      !  !"(
  ! .!  1" $  $  % !" 
 ( 8 . !.   " $ !9    4 
 6 ".( , !  $  !"  
"    1 " 9  4 "    
  6 "    ( :.   !"  "
  :  < '(   
 ,  * '(
=     <  = 'B(     $  "
'(    4 ' &(  $  $ '&(
          "    
 $ ( 3  !  .!  $ ! 1"22
1"  " !" " "  !"(
3  $  " " $   ";! "
$ <   $  ".  " &!#" '  
( !"          !. 
$   !"    42 ) " ".(
3 ". $! $  " ) "    
 " " .! ;     ;   
    .  1 " (   
   ;  ! "   ";!  ( 
"!  !" $     "   !"
!" $  "
 "! $ =! $ "
  .   $( >!   !    )
"  $ %   !;      )
 " !" 1" 1 ( 3! !   "  ;
! $ "  )  :"; &' +! &'   
:"; &6'(
        
  2$ "  ! %  " ?" "!2
 " &$;;' ! !   ( -    !
  " ". &!  !#" '  " $ 
@! " "( 3     "!   
 ?" "! "  $ "! "!  $!  ."
!"(
>. "! "  .     !"2
  D 6 =  < '&&(  
       1     #
  ,    1      
  #     1          
           + 
   " "!  ( 3 @! " " 
=! $  ! " " "  !  =!
$  !"(
 4  "   "   "!
 ". #! " "    "! ".
"( 3 ! !   "   1 ! $
) 9    "" "!"!!   .   .
" "! ." ( :.  !  " 
    ! !    " !   (
,  " ! .    "!"!!(
3     .! )   
    "     "  (

 )   ". "  !"  ((
 !"   $ " "!     "
 "( ?    )  -  .  !
 " "!  ! !"( 3 ! $ !"
 . !"  6  $ $  !"   
"   !" .  !   " (
3 !"  !       " 2
5  A -" ? "   ) " 
! $ ! $ "    $ .    B
#!   !" """( 3 % "  $
     !" "!"(    
 !"  6   $     ". %" !
$ )   $ " (
A !"   .    $(     
   #   < '0(  ? 'B0( <  .
    D  
 E  '    ( #  <%
 '0(       F   #  
 #  #
6
Citations
More filters

Genome-wide association study identifies 74 loci associated with educational attainment

Aysu Okbay, +254 more
Journal ArticleDOI

Intelligence and socioeconomic success: A meta-analytic review of longitudinal research ☆

Tarmo Strenze
- 01 Sep 2007 - 
TL;DR: This paper conducted a meta-analysis of the longitudinal studies that have investigated intelligence as a predictor of success (as measured by education, occupation, and income) in order to better evaluate the predictive power of intelligence, also including meta-analyses of parental socioeconomic status (SES) and academic performance (school grades).
Posted Content

Why the apple doesn't fall far: understanding intergenerational transmission of human capital

Sandra E. Black, +2 more
- 01 Oct 2003 - 
TL;DR: In this article, the authors used the reform of the education system that was implemented in different municipalities at different times in the 1960s as an instrument for parental education, and found little evidence of a causal relationship between parents' education and children's education, despite significant OLS relationships.
Journal ArticleDOI

Priceless: The Nonpecuniary Benefits of Schooling

Philip Oreopoulos, +1 more
- 01 Feb 2011 - 
TL;DR: The American Economic Association (AEA) publications are available for personal or classroom use without fee provided that copies are not distributed for profit or direct commercial advantage and that copies show this notice on the first page or initial screen of a display along with the full citation, including the name of the author as mentioned in this paper.
Journal ArticleDOI

Does Educational Tracking Affect Performance and Inequality? Differences-in-Differences Evidence across Countries

Eric A. Hanushek, +1 more
- 01 Mar 2006 - 
TL;DR: In this article, the authors employ an international differences-in-differences approach to identify tracking effects by comparing differences in outcome between primary and secondary school across tracked and non-tracked systems.
References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI

Does Compulsory School Attendance Affect Schooling and Earnings

Joshua D. Angrist, +1 more
- 01 Nov 1991 - 
TL;DR: This paper found that the season of birth is related to educational attainment and earnings, and that roughly 25 percent of potential dropouts remain in school because of compulsory schooling laws. But, they did not study the effect of compulsory attendance laws on educational attainment.
Posted Content

The causal effect of education on earnings

David Card
- 01 Jan 1999 - 
TL;DR: This paper surveys the recent literature on the causal relationship between education and earnings and concludes that the average (or average marginal) return to education is not much below the estimate that emerges from a standard human capital earnings function fit by OLS.
Journal ArticleDOI

Random group effects and the precision of regression estimates

Brent R. Moulton
- 01 Aug 1986 - 
TL;DR: The authors analyzes several empirical examples to investigate the applicability of random effects models and the consequences of inappropriately using ordinary least squares (OLS) estimation in the presence of random group effects.
Posted Content

Estimating the Return to Schooling: Progress on Some Persistent Econometric Problems

David Card, +1 more
- 01 Jun 2000 - 
TL;DR: In this paper, a set of recent studies have attempted to measure the causal effect of education on labor market earnings by using institutional features of the education system as exogenous determinants of schooling outcomes.
Journal ArticleDOI

Estimating the Return to Schooling: Progress on Some Persistent Econometric Problems

David Card
- 01 Sep 2001 - 
TL;DR: In this paper, a set of recent studies have attempted to measure the causal effect of education on labor market earnings by using institutional features of the education system as exogenous determinants of schooling outcomes.
Related Papers (5)

Does Educational Tracking Affect Performance and Inequality? Differences-in-Differences Evidence across Countries

Eric A. Hanushek, +1 more
- 01 Mar 2006 - 

Estimating Average and Local Average Treatment Effects of Education when Compulsory Schooling Laws Really Matter

Philip Oreopoulos
- 01 Feb 2006 - 

Why the apple doesn’t fall far : understanding intergenerational transmission of human capital

Sandra E. Black, +2 more
- 01 Oct 2003 - 

Does Compulsory School Attendance Affect Schooling and Earnings

Joshua D. Angrist, +1 more
- 01 Nov 1991 - 

Estimates of the economic return to schooling for the United Kingdom

Ian Walker, +1 more
- 01 Dec 1995 -