Support RAND For More Information

CHILDREN AND FAMILIES EDUCATION AND THE ARTS ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT HEALTH AND HEALTH CARE

INFRASTRUCTURE AND TRANSPORTATION

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS LAW AND BUSINESS NATIONAL SECURITY

POPULATION AND AGING PUBLIC SAFETY

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY TERRORISM AND

HOMELAND SECURITY

The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit institution that helps improve policy and decisionmaking through research and analysis. This electronic document was made available from as a public service of the RAND Corporation.

Skip all front matter: Jump to Page 16

Support RAND

Browse Reports & Bookstore Make a charitable contribution

For More Information

Visit RAND at Explore the Pardee RAND Graduate School View document details

Limited Electronic Distribution Rights

This document and trademark(s) contained herein are protected by law as indicated in a notice appearing later in this work. This electronic representation of RAND intellectual property is provided for noncommercial use only. Unauthorized posting of RAND electronic documents to a non-RAND website is prohibited. RAND electronic documents are protected under copyright law. Permission is required from RAND to reproduce, or reuse in another form, any of our research documents for commercial use. For information on reprint and linking permissions, please see RAND Permissions.

This product is part of the Pardee RAND Graduate School (PRGS) dissertation series. PRGS dissertations are produced by graduate fellows of the Pardee RAND Graduate School, the world's leading producer of Ph.D.'s in policy analysis. The dissertation has been supervised, reviewed, and approved by the graduate fellow's faculty committee.

Dissertation

Three Essays on Education Reform in the United States

Ethan Scherer

COR PORAT ION

Dissertation

Three Essays on Education Reform in the United States

Ethan Scherer

This document was submitted as a dissertation in July 2014 in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the doctoral degree in public policy analysis at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. The faculty committee that supervised and approved the dissertation consisted of Jim Hosek (Chair), Paco Martorell, and Jennifer McCombs.

PARDEE RAND GRADUATE SCHOOL

Published 2014 by the RAND Corporation 1776 Main Street, P.O. Box 2138, Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138

1200 South Hayes Street, Arlington, VA 22202-5050 4570 Fifth Avenue, Suite 600, Pittsburgh, PA 15213-2665

RAND URL: To order RAND documents or to obtain additional information, contact

Distribution Services: Telephone: (310) 451-7002; Email: order@

Table of Contents

Figures............................................................................................................................................. v Tables ............................................................................................................................................ vii Abstract .......................................................................................................................................... ix Acknowledgements........................................................................................................................ xi 1. Does Information Change Voter Behavior? An Analysis of California's School Board

Elections.................................................................................................................................... 1

Abstract .................................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Background on California School Board Elections and Accountability ............................................ 6

1.1.1. California School Board Elections ............................................................................................. 6 1.1.2. Standardized Tests and Accountability in California ................................................................. 9 1.2. Information and Election Timing Framework ................................................................................. 10 1.2.1 Retrospective Voting and Accountability/Information ............................................................. 11 1.2.2. Election Timing ........................................................................................................................ 12 1.3. Data ................................................................................................................................................. 14 1.4. Basic Empirical Model .................................................................................................................... 17 1.5. Results ............................................................................................................................................. 18 1.5.1. The effect of PSAA on incumbent reelection rates in odd years.............................................. 18 1.5.2. The effect of PSAA on incumbent reelection rates in even years ............................................ 19 1.5.3. Robustness checks .................................................................................................................... 21 1.5.4. Decomposition of the treatment effects.................................................................................... 23 1.5.5. The effect of print media on the implementation of PSAA...................................................... 24 1.5.6. The effect of newly elected school board members on API..................................................... 26 1.6. Conclusions ..................................................................................................................................... 28

2. Can recruitment and retention bonuses attract teachers to low performing schools? Evidence from a policy intervention in North Carolina ......................................................................... 46

Abstract .................................................................................................................................................. 46 2.1. The structure of the Mission Possible program ............................................................................... 50

2.1.1. Recruitment, Retention, and Performance Bonuses ................................................................. 50 2.1.2. Staff Development.................................................................................................................... 52 2.1.3. Performance Accountability..................................................................................................... 52 2.1.4. Structural Support..................................................................................................................... 52 2.2. Data and methods ............................................................................................................................ 53 2.3. Results ............................................................................................................................................. 59 2.3.1. Description of observable high school teacher changes ........................................................... 59 2.3.2. Difference-in-difference model of Mission Possible ............................................................... 60 2.3.3. Difference-in-difference specification check ........................................................................... 62

iii

2.3.4. The entry and exit of Algebra I teachers .................................................................................. 63 2.4. Conclusion and policy implications ................................................................................................ 64 References .............................................................................................................................................. 67

3. Can principal and teacher bonuses improve student achievement? Evidence from a policy intervention in North Carolina ................................................................................................ 81

Abstract .................................................................................................................................................. 81 3.1 The structure of the Mission Possible program ................................................................................ 85

3.1.1 Recruitment, Retention, and Performance Bonuses .................................................................. 86 3.1.2 Staff Development..................................................................................................................... 87 3.1.3 Performance Accountability ...................................................................................................... 88 3.1.4. Structural Support..................................................................................................................... 88 3.1.5 Comparison of Incentive Design with Prior Random Control Trial Research .......................... 88 3.2. Data and methods ............................................................................................................................ 90 3.3. Results ............................................................................................................................................. 94 3.3.1 Simple difference-in-difference model of Mission Possible on Algebra I test scores .............. 94 3.3.2. Year-by-year difference-in-difference specification ................................................................ 95 3.3.3. Variation in the program's impacts .......................................................................................... 96 3.3.4 Evidence that the size of the recruitment/retention bonus matters ............................................ 97 3.4. Discussion and policy implications ................................................................................................. 98 References ............................................................................................................................................ 101

iv

Figures

Figure 1.1: Turnout rate among registered voters from 1995-2006.............................................. 35 Figure 1.2. Incumbent reelection rates by odd election years since accountability reform.......... 36 Figure 1.3. Incumbent reelection rates by even election years since accountability reform ........ 38 Figure 1.4 ? Articles on the "Academic Performance Index" in California ................................. 43 Figure 2.1: Average percent of teachers with three years or less experience over time by whether

the school is a Mission Possible school. ............................................................................... 73 Figure 2.2: Average percent of teachers fully licensed over time by whether the school is a

Mission Possible school. ....................................................................................................... 74 Figure 2.3: Average turnover rates over time by whether the school is a Mission Possible school.

............................................................................................................................................... 75 Figure 2.4: Distribution of teacher value-added for MP and non-MP schools, before and after the

implementation of MP. ......................................................................................................... 76 Figure 2.5 Difference-in-difference estimates of MP on standardized teacher effectiveness by

year with clustered standard errors and placebo confidence intervals.................................. 78 Figure 3.1: The estimated impact of Mission Possible reform on Algebra I standardized test

scores................................................................................................................................... 109 Figure 3.2: The estimated impact of Mission Possible reform on black students' Algebra I

standardized test scores....................................................................................................... 110 Figure 3.3: The estimated impact of Mission Possible reform on free/reduced price students'

Algebra I standardized test scores....................................................................................... 111 Figure 3.4: The estimated impact of Mission Possible reform on English I standardized test

scores................................................................................................................................... 112

v

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download