Long-Term Orientation and Educational Performance

We study the role of Long-Term Orientation on the educational attainment of immigrant students. Controlling for the quality of schools and socioeconomic characteristics, students from long-term oriented cultures perform better in third grade reading and math, have larger test score gains over time, fewer absences and disciplinary incidents, are less likely to repeat grades, more likely to enroll in advanced high school courses, and are more likely to graduate from high school in four years. Evidence on mechanisms suggests that both parents' educational choices for their children and social learning from peers are important mechanisms.