IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/empeco/v56y2019i2d10.1007_s00181-018-1443-6.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Threat of grade retention, remedial education and student achievement: evidence from upper secondary schools in Italy

Author

Listed:
  • Erich Battistin

    (University of Maryland
    CEPR
    FBK-IRVAPP
    IZA)

  • Antonio Schizzerotto

    (FBK-IRVAPP)

Abstract

We use a reform in Italy to investigate the effects on academic achievement of more stringent requirements for grade progression at secondary school. Geographic discontinuities in the implementation enable comparison among similar students undergoing alternative progression rules. We find different short-term results across curricular tracks, with negative effects of the increased threat of grade retention for students in technical and vocational schools. In contrast with the effects on academic achievement, we find that schools reacted to the additional administrative burden and costs imposed by the reform by admitting more students to the next grade. We argue that the reform had a negative effect on the motivation and engagement of the students who experienced the greatest difficulties, exacerbating inequalities.

Suggested Citation

  • Erich Battistin & Antonio Schizzerotto, 2019. "Threat of grade retention, remedial education and student achievement: evidence from upper secondary schools in Italy," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 56(2), pages 651-678, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:empeco:v:56:y:2019:i:2:d:10.1007_s00181-018-1443-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s00181-018-1443-6
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00181-018-1443-6
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s00181-018-1443-6?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Eric A. Hanushek & Ludger Wössmann, 2006. "Does Educational Tracking Affect Performance and Inequality? Differences- in-Differences Evidence Across Countries," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 116(510), pages 63-76, March.
    2. Lex Borghans & Bart H. H. Golsteyn & James J. Heckman & Huub Meijers, 2009. "Gender Differences in Risk Aversion and Ambiguity Aversion," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 7(2-3), pages 649-658, 04-05.
    3. Zimmer, Ron, 2003. "A new twist in the educational tracking debate," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(3), pages 307-315, June.
    4. Alberto Abadie, 2005. "Semiparametric Difference-in-Differences Estimators," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 72(1), pages 1-19.
    5. Victor Lavy & Analia Schlosser, 2011. "Mechanisms and Impacts of Gender Peer Effects at School," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 3(2), pages 1-33, April.
    6. Mich�le Belot & Vincent Vandenberghe, 2014. "Evaluating the 'threat' effects of grade repetition: exploiting the 2001 reform by the French-Speaking Community of Belgium," Education Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 73-89, February.
    7. Cappellari, Lorenzo & Lucifora, Claudio, 2009. "The "Bologna Process" and college enrollment decisions," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(6), pages 638-647, December.
    8. Brian A. Jacob & Lars Lefgren, 2004. "Remedial Education and Student Achievement: A Regression-Discontinuity Analysis," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 86(1), pages 226-244, February.
    9. Betts, Julian R. & Grogger, Jeff, 2003. "The impact of grading standards on student achievement, educational attainment, and entry-level earnings," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 22(4), pages 343-352, August.
    10. Juan Carlos Calcagno & Bridget Terry Long, 2008. "The Impact of Postsecondary Remediation Using a Regression Discontinuity Approach: Addressing Endogenous Sorting and Noncompliance," NBER Working Papers 14194, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Battistin, Erich & Meroni, Elena Claudia, 2016. "Should we increase instruction time in low achieving schools? Evidence from Southern Italy," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 39-56.
    12. Maria Paola & Vincenzo Scoppa, 2014. "The effectiveness of remedial courses in Italy: a fuzzy regression discontinuity design," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 27(2), pages 365-386, April.
    13. Brian A. Jacob & Lars Lefgren, 2009. "The Effect of Grade Retention on High School Completion," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 1(3), pages 33-58, July.
    14. Lex Borghans & Bart H.H. Golsteyn & James J. Heckman & Huub Meijers, 2009. "Gender Differences in Risk Aversion and Ambiguity," Working Papers 200903, Geary Institute, University College Dublin.
    15. Victor Lavy & Analia Schlosser, 2005. "Targeted Remedial Education for Underperforming Teenagers: Costs and Benefits," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 23(4), pages 839-874, October.
    16. George A. Akerlof & Rachel E. Kranton, 2002. "Identity and Schooling: Some Lessons for the Economics of Education," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 40(4), pages 1167-1201, December.
    17. Victor Lavy & Analía Schlosser, 2011. "Corrigendum: Mechanisms and Impacts of Gender Peer Effects at School," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 3(3), pages 268-268, July.
    18. Figlio, David N. & Lucas, Maurice E., 2004. "Do high grading standards affect student performance?," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(9-10), pages 1815-1834, August.
    19. Stephen Machin & Sandra McNally, 2005. "Gender and Student Achievement in English Schools," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 21(3), pages 357-372, Autumn.
    20. Samuel Bowles & Herbert Gintis, 2002. "The Inheritance of Inequality," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 16(3), pages 3-30, Summer.
    21. Justine S. Hastings & Christopher A. Neilson & Seth D. Zimmerman, 2012. "The Effect of School Choice on Intrinsic Motivation and Academic Outcomes," NBER Working Papers 18324, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    22. Victor Lavy & Olmo Silva & Felix Weinhardt, 2012. "The Good, the Bad, and the Average: Evidence on Ability Peer Effects in Schools," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 30(2), pages 367-414.
    23. James J. Heckman & Vytlacil, Edward J., 2007. "Econometric Evaluation of Social Programs, Part I: Causal Models, Structural Models and Econometric Policy Evaluation," Handbook of Econometrics, in: J.J. Heckman & E.E. Leamer (ed.), Handbook of Econometrics, edition 1, volume 6, chapter 70, Elsevier.
    24. Guido W. Imbens, 2004. "Nonparametric Estimation of Average Treatment Effects Under Exogeneity: A Review," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 86(1), pages 4-29, February.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Hvidman, Charlotte & Koch, Alexander K. & Nafziger, Julia & Nielsen, Søren Albeck & Rosholm, Michael, 2020. "An Intensive, School-Based Learning Camp Targeting Academic and Non-Cognitive Skills Evaluated in a Randomized Trial," IZA Discussion Papers 13771, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Cathles, Alison & Ou, Dongshu & Sasso, Simone & Setrana, Mary & van Veen, Tom, 2021. "Where do you come from, where do you go? Assessing skills gaps and labour market outcomes for young adults with different immigration backgrounds," International Journal of Educational Development, Elsevier, vol. 86(C).
    3. Victor Lavy & Assaf Kott & Genia Rachkovski, 2022. "Does Remedial Education in Late Childhood Pay Off After All? Long-Run Consequences for University Schooling, Labor Market Outcomes, and Intergenerational Mobility," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 40(1), pages 239-282.
    4. Eren, Ozkan & Depew, Briggs & Barnes, Stephen, 2017. "Test-based promotion policies, dropping out, and juvenile crime," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 153(C), pages 9-31.
    5. Nielsen, Søren Albeck, 2023. "Boys left behind: The effects of summer camp and follow-up strategies on academic, personal, and social competencies," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    6. Emilio Borghesan & Hugo Reis & Petra E. Todd, 2022. "Learning Through Repetition? A Dynamic Evaluation of Grade Retention in Portugal," PIER Working Paper Archive 22-030, Penn Institute for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania.
    7. Zhang, Shiying & Huang, Ao, 2022. "The long-term effects of automatic grade promotion on child development," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    8. Zoltan Hermann & Marianna Kopasz, 2018. "Educational policies and the gender gap in test scores: A cross-country analysis," Budapest Working Papers on the Labour Market 1805, Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Figlio, D. & Karbownik, K. & Salvanes, K.G., 2016. "Education Research and Administrative Data," Handbook of the Economics of Education,, Elsevier.
    2. Hill, Andrew J., 2014. "The costs of failure: Negative externalities in high school course repetition," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 91-105.
    3. Marchionni, Mariana & Pinto, Florencia & Vazquez, Emmanuel, 2013. "Determinantes de la desigualdad en el desempeño educativo en la Argentina [Determinants of the inequality in PISA test scores in Argentina]," MPRA Paper 56421, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Helena Holmlund & Olmo Silva, 2014. "Targeting Noncognitive Skills to Improve Cognitive Outcomes: Evidence from a Remedial Education Intervention," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 8(2), pages 126-160.
    5. Marchionni, Mariana & Vazquez, Emmanuel & Pinto, Florencia, 2012. "Desigualdad educativa en la Argentina. Análisis en base a los datos PISA 2009 [Education Inequality in Argentina. An analysis based on PISA 2009 data]," MPRA Paper 56420, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Victor Lavy & Assaf Kott & Genia Rachkovski, 2022. "Does Remedial Education in Late Childhood Pay Off After All? Long-Run Consequences for University Schooling, Labor Market Outcomes, and Intergenerational Mobility," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 40(1), pages 239-282.
    7. Ignacio García-Pérez, J. & Hidalgo-Hidalgo, Marisa, 2017. "No student left behind? Evidence from the Programme for School Guidance in Spain," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 60(C), pages 97-111.
    8. Ciccone, Antonio & Garcia-Fontes, Walter, 2014. "Gender Peer Effects in School, a Birth Cohort Approach," Working Papers 14-19, University of Mannheim, Department of Economics.
    9. Jenny Säve-Söderbergh & Gabriella Sjögren Lindquist, 2014. "Children Do Not Behave Like Adults: Gender Gaps in Performance and Risk Taking within a Random Social Context in the High-Stakes Game Shows Jeopardy and Junior Jeopardy," CESifo Working Paper Series 4595, CESifo.
    10. Elena Claudia Meroni & Giovanni Abbiati, 2014. "Gender differences in exposure to more instruction time. Evidence from Italy," Working Papers 064, "Carlo F. Dondena" Centre for Research on Social Dynamics (DONDENA), Università Commerciale Luigi Bocconi.
    11. Säve Söderberg, Jenny & Sjögren Lindquist, Gabriella, 2014. "Children do not behave like adults: Gender gaps in performance and risk taking," Working Paper Series 7/2013, Stockholm University, Swedish Institute for Social Research.
    12. Aparicio Fenoll, Ainoa & Zaccagni, Sarah, 2022. "Gender mix and team performance: Differences between exogenously and endogenously formed teams," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 79(C).
    13. Braakmann, Nils & McDonald, Stephen, 2018. "Student exposure to socio-economic diversity and students’ university outcomes – Evidence from English administrative data," MPRA Paper 90351, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    14. Sallin, Aurelién, 2021. "Estimating returns to special education: combining machine learning and text analysis to address confounding," Economics Working Paper Series 2109, University of St. Gallen, School of Economics and Political Science.
    15. Takao Kato & Yang Song, 2022. "Advising, gender, and performance: Evidence from a university with exogenous adviser–student gender match," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 60(1), pages 121-141, January.
    16. Rigissa Megalokonomou & Yi Zhang, 2022. "How Good Am I? Effects and Mechanisms behind Salient Ranks," CESifo Working Paper Series 9991, CESifo.
    17. Silvia Mendolia & Alfredo R Paloyo & Ian Walker, 2018. "Heterogeneous effects of high school peers on educational outcomes," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 70(3), pages 613-634.
    18. Kristoffersen, Jannie Helene Grøne & Krægpøth, Morten Visby & Nielsen, Helena Skyt & Simonsen, Marianne, 2015. "Disruptive school peers and student outcomes," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 1-13.
    19. Guido W. Imbens & Jeffrey M. Wooldridge, 2009. "Recent Developments in the Econometrics of Program Evaluation," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 47(1), pages 5-86, March.
    20. Chris Ryan, 2017. "Measurement of Peer Effects," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 50(1), pages 121-129, March.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Policy evaluation; Quasi-experimental design; Remedial education;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C31 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Cross-Sectional Models; Spatial Models; Treatment Effect Models; Quantile Regressions; Social Interaction Models
    • I24 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Education and Inequality
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:empeco:v:56:y:2019:i:2:d:10.1007_s00181-018-1443-6. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.