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Task-specific experience and task-specific talent: Decomposing the productivity of high school teachers

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  • Cook, Jason B.
  • Mansfield, Richard K.

Abstract

We use administrative panel data to decompose worker performance into components relating to general talent, task-specific talent, general experience, and task-specific experience. We consider the context of high school teachers, in which tasks consist of teaching particular subjects in particular tracks. Using the timing of changes in the subjects and difficulty levels to which teachers are assigned to provide identifying variation, we show that a substantial part of the productivity gains to teacher experience are actually subject-specific. Similarly, while three-quarters of the variance in the permanent component of productivity among teachers is portable across subjects and levels, there exist non-trivial subject-specific and level-specific components. Counterfactual simulations suggest that maximizing the test-score contribution of task-specific experience and task-specific talent can increase student performance by as much as .04 test score standard deviations relative to random assignment of teachers to classrooms.

Suggested Citation

  • Cook, Jason B. & Mansfield, Richard K., 2016. "Task-specific experience and task-specific talent: Decomposing the productivity of high school teachers," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 51-72.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:pubeco:v:140:y:2016:i:c:p:51-72
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jpubeco.2016.04.001
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    Cited by:

    1. Javaeria Qureshi & Ben Ost, 2019. "Does Teacher‐Family Experience Affect Test Scores?," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 37(3), pages 509-523, July.
    2. Nirav Mehta, 2022. "A Partial Identification Approach to Identifying the Determinants of Human Capital Accumulation: An Application to Teachers," University of Western Ontario, Departmental Research Report Series 20221, University of Western Ontario, Department of Economics.
    3. Pieter De Vlieger & Brian Jacob & Kevin Stange, 2018. "Measuring Instructor Effectiveness in Higher Education," NBER Chapters, in: Productivity in Higher Education, pages 209-258, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. DeAngelo, Gregory & Owens, Emily G., 2017. "Learning the ropes: General experience, task-Specific experience, and the output of police officers," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 368-377.
    5. Karol Kempa, 2022. "Task-specific human capital and returns to specialization: evidence from association football [All about balance? A test of the jack-of-all-trades theory using military enlistment data]," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 74(1), pages 136-154.
    6. Decio Coviello & Andrea Ichino & Nicola Persico, 2019. "Measuring the Gains from Labor Specialization," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 62(3), pages 403-426.
    7. Williza Cordova & Joji Linaugo, 2022. "Pedagogical Content Knowledge Practices of Public School Science Teachers," Technium Social Sciences Journal, Technium Science, vol. 37(1), pages 37-50, November.
    8. Kevin C. Bastian, 2019. "A Degree Above? The Value-Added Estimates and Evaluation Ratings of Teachers with a Graduate Degree," Education Finance and Policy, MIT Press, vol. 14(4), pages 652-678, Fall.
    9. Sorina Ioana Mișu & Cătălina Radu & Alecxandrina Deaconu & Simona Toma, 2022. "How to Increase Teacher Performance through Engagement and Work Efficacy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(16), pages 1-28, August.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Task-specific human capital; Teacher experience; Teacher value-added; Teacher quality;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I28 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Government Policy
    • 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
    • L23 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Organization of Production

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