Can Tracking Raise the Test Scores of High-Ability Minority Students?
American Economic Review
vol. 106,
no. 10, October 2016
(pp. 2783-2816)
Abstract
We evaluate a tracking program in a large urban district where schools with at least one gifted fourth grader create a separate "gifted/high achiever" classroom. Most seats are filled by non-gifted high achievers, ranked by previous-year test scores. We study the program's effects on the high achievers using (i) a rank-based regression discontinuity design, and (ii) a between-school/cohort analysis. We find significant effects that are concentrated among black and Hispanic participants. Minorities gain 0.5 standard deviation units in fourth-grade reading and math scores, with persistent gains through sixth grade. We find no evidence of negative or positive spillovers on nonparticipants.Citation
Card, David, and Laura Giuliano. 2016. "Can Tracking Raise the Test Scores of High-Ability Minority Students?" American Economic Review, 106 (10): 2783-2816. DOI: 10.1257/aer.20150484Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- I21 Analysis of Education
- J21 Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
- J24 Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity