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Teachers’ salaries and human capital, and their effects on academic performance: an institution-level analysis of Los Angeles County high schools

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  • Richard Cebula
  • Franklin Mixon
  • Mark Montez

Abstract

This study re-examines the relationships between school performance (at the high school level) on standardized exams and both teacher pay/salaries and teacher quality, where the latter is measured by teachers’ human capital. To undertake this analysis, we employ Academic Performance Index (API) data from high schools in Los Angeles County (CA) to measure school performance. Heteroscedasticity-consistent OLS results indicate that both teacher pay and teacher quality exercise positive impacts upon school performance. Indeed, an increase from lowest to highest (i.e., over the entire range) of teacher pay and teacher quality, ceteris paribus, generates high school performance increases of approximately three and six percentage points, respectively. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media New York 2015

Suggested Citation

  • Richard Cebula & Franklin Mixon & Mark Montez, 2015. "Teachers’ salaries and human capital, and their effects on academic performance: an institution-level analysis of Los Angeles County high schools," Journal of Economics and Finance, Springer;Academy of Economics and Finance, vol. 39(2), pages 347-356, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:jecfin:v:39:y:2015:i:2:p:347-356
    DOI: 10.1007/s12197-013-9261-3
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    Cited by:

    1. Reilee L. Berger & John V. Winters, 2016. "Does Private Schooling Increase Adult Earnings? Cohort-Level Evidence for U.S. States," The Review of Regional Studies, Southern Regional Science Association, vol. 46(3), pages 281-294, Winter.
    2. Richard J. Cebula & Joshua C. Hall & Maria Y. Tackett, 2017. "Non-public competition and public school performance: evidence from West Virginia," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 49(12), pages 1185-1193, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Test score performance; Teacher salaries; Teacher quality; Regional focus; R23; R28; R29; J24; J45;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population
    • R28 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Government Policy
    • R29 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Other
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J45 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Public Sector Labor Markets

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