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The Effect of Fe y Alegria on School Achievement: Exploiting a School Lottery Selection as a Natural Experiment

Author

Listed:
  • Lavado, Pablo

    (Universidad del Pacifico)

  • Cueto, Santiago

    (GRADE)

  • Yamada, Gustavo

    (Universidad del Pacifico)

  • Wensjoe, Micaela

    (Group for the Analysis of Development (GRADE))

Abstract

Fe y Alegria is an organization working in many developing countries as a public-private partnership. This study estimates the effect of one Fe y Alegria school in Peru on mathematics and reading comprehension among second grade primary pupils, between 2007 and 2012. The identification strategy is based on the fact that for this school Fe y Alegría conducted a lottery to determine which students would be accepted onto first grade. We could prepare our estimates only for one school where records for several years were available. The results show that this Fe y Alegria school generated substantial score gains for lottery winners, equivalent to 0.4 standard deviations. We also found that this effect has been increasing over time. In reading comprehension the effect was 0.17 s.d. in 2007 and 1.02 s.d. in 2012. In math, the effect was 0.29 s.d. in 2007 and 1.2 in 2012. These are promising results in a country where overall student achievement in standardized tests has been low, and where discussions on under what conditions may public partnerships result in better educational outcomes.

Suggested Citation

  • Lavado, Pablo & Cueto, Santiago & Yamada, Gustavo & Wensjoe, Micaela, 2016. "The Effect of Fe y Alegria on School Achievement: Exploiting a School Lottery Selection as a Natural Experiment," IZA Discussion Papers 10431, IZA Network @ LISER.
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp10431
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Booker, Kevin & Gilpatric, Scott M. & Gronberg, Timothy & Jansen, Dennis, 2008. "The effect of charter schools on traditional public school students in Texas: Are children who stay behind left behind?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 64(1), pages 123-145, July.
    2. Gabriela Guerrero & Santiago Cueto & Claudia Sugimaru, 2010. "Alianzas público privadas a favor de la primera infancia en el Perú: posibilidades y riesgos de su aplicación," Documentos de Investigación dt58, Grupo de Análisis para el Desarrollo (GRADE).
    3. Parra Osorio, Juan Carlos & Wodon, Quentin, 2011. "El desempeño de los estudiantes de secundaria en los colegios de Fe y Alegría en Colombia: una cuestión de Fe y/o Alegría? [Academic performance of Fe y Alegria high school students in Colombia: is it a matter of Fe (faith) and/or Alegria (joy)?]," MPRA Paper 28518, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    4. Joshua D. Angrist & Susan M. Dynarski & Thomas J. Kane & Parag A. Pathak & Christopher R. Walters, 2012. "Who Benefits from KIPP?," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 31(4), pages 837-860, September.
    5. repec:wbk:wbpubs:2612 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. Joshua Angrist & Eric Bettinger & Erik Bloom & Elizabeth King & Michael Kremer, 2002. "Vouchers for Private Schooling in Colombia: Evidence from a Randomized Natural Experiment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 92(5), pages 1535-1558, December.
    7. Hsieh, Chang-Tai & Urquiola, Miguel, 2006. "The effects of generalized school choice on achievement and stratification: Evidence from Chile's voucher program," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 90(8-9), pages 1477-1503, September.
    8. Norman LaRocque & Harry Anthony Patrinos, 2007. "Enhancing Accountability in Schools : What Can Choice and Contracting Contribute," World Bank Publications - Reports 10296, The World Bank Group.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Blog mentions

    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. Una lotería como experimento natural: performance escolar y Fe y Alegría
      by Pablo Lavado, Santiago Cueto, Gustavo Yamada y Micaela Wensjoe in Foco Económico on 2020-02-15 15:55:42

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    Cited by:

    1. Wodon, Quentin, 2022. "Global report on integral human development 2022: measuring the contributions of Catholic and other faith-based organizations to education, healthcare, and social protection," MPRA Paper 114809, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    JEL classification:

    • C13 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric and Statistical Methods and Methodology: General - - - Estimation: General
    • C33 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Multiple or Simultaneous Equation Models; Multiple Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models
    • C93 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Design of Experiments - - - Field Experiments
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I22 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Educational Finance; Financial Aid

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