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What Can Be Done to Improve Struggling High Schools?

Author

Listed:
  • Julie Berry Cullen
  • Steven D. Levitt
  • Erin Robertson
  • Sally Sadoff

Abstract

In spite of decades of well-intentioned efforts targeted at struggling high schools, outcomes today are little improved. A handful of innovative programs have achieved great success on a small scale, but more generally, the economic futures of the students at the bottom of the human capital distribution remain dismal. In our view, expanding access to educational options that focus on life skills and work experience, as opposed to a focus on traditional definitions of academic success, represents the most cost-effective, broadly implementable source of improvements for this group.

Suggested Citation

  • Julie Berry Cullen & Steven D. Levitt & Erin Robertson & Sally Sadoff, 2013. "What Can Be Done to Improve Struggling High Schools?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 27(2), pages 133-152, Spring.
  • Handle: RePEc:aea:jecper:v:27:y:2013:i:2:p:133-52
    Note: DOI: 10.1257/jep.27.2.133
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Tommaso Agasisti & Francesco Avvisati & Francesca Borgonovi & Sergio Longobardi, 2021. "What School Factors are Associated with the Success of Socio-Economically Disadvantaged Students? An Empirical Investigation Using PISA Data," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 157(2), pages 749-781, September.
    3. Celeste K. Carruthers & Christopher Jepsen, 2020. "Vocational Education: An International Perspective," CESifo Working Paper Series 8718, CESifo.
    4. Steven D. Levitt & John A. List & Sally Sadoff, 2016. "The Effect of Performance-Based Incentives on Educational Achievement: Evidence from a Randomized Experiment," NBER Working Papers 22107, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Ardyn Nordstrom, 2021. "Can Interventions Targeting Community Attitudes Improve Education for Marginalized Students? Evidence from a Mixed-Methods Experimental Design in Zimbabwe," Working Paper 1472, Economics Department, Queen's University.
    6. Bonilla, Sade, 2020. "The dropout effects of career pathways: Evidence from California," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    7. Alison Evans Cuellar & Dhaval M. Dave, 2015. "Causal Effects of Mental Health Treatment on Education Outcomes for Youth in the Justice System," NBER Working Papers 21206, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Eric J. Brunner & Shaun Dougherty & Stephen L. Ross, 2019. "The Effects of Career and Technical Education: Evidence from the Connecticut Technical High School System," Working papers 2019-13, University of Connecticut, Department of Economics.
    9. Philip J. Cook & Kenneth Dodge & George Farkas & Roland G. Fryer, Jr & Jonathan Guryan & Jens Ludwig & Susan Mayer & Harold Pollack & Laurence Steinberg, 2014. "The (Surprising) Efficacy of Academic and Behavioral Intervention with Disadvantaged Youth: Results from a Randomized Experiment in Chicago," NBER Working Papers 19862, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    10. Diane Alexander, 2017. "How do Doctors Respond to Incentives? Unintended Consequences of Paying Doctors to Reduce Costs," Working Paper Series WP-2017-9, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
    11. Dave, Dhaval M., 2016. "Causal effects of mental health treatment on education outcomes for youth in the justice systemAuthor-Name: Cuellar, Alison," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 54(C), pages 321-339.
    12. Hemelt, Steven W. & Lenard, Matthew A. & Paeplow, Colleen G., 2019. "Building bridges to life after high school: Contemporary career academies and student outcomes," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 68(C), pages 161-178.
    13. Iftikhar Hussain, 2015. "Subjective Performance Evaluation in the Public Sector: Evidence from School Inspections," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(1), pages 189-221.
    14. Shaun M. Dougherty, 2018. "The Effect of Career and Technical Education on Human Capital Accumulation: Causal Evidence from Massachusetts," Education Finance and Policy, MIT Press, vol. 13(2), pages 119-148, Spring.
    15. Roland G. Fryer, Jr, 2016. "The Production of Human Capital in Developed Countries: Evidence from 196 Randomized Field Experiments," NBER Working Papers 22130, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    16. Jens Dietrichson & Trine Filges & Rasmus H. Klokker & Bjørn C. A. Viinholt & Martin Bøg & Ulla H. Jensen, 2020. "Targeted school‐based interventions for improving reading and mathematics for students with, or at risk of, academic difficulties in Grades 7–12: A systematic review," Campbell Systematic Reviews, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(2), June.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H75 - Public Economics - - State and Local Government; Intergovernmental Relations - - - State and Local Government: Health, Education, and Welfare
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy

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