Working Paper: NBER ID: w12005
Authors: Joshua Angrist; Aimee Chin; Ricardo Godoy
Abstract: Between 1898 and 1948, English was the language of instruction for most post-primary grades in Puerto Rican public schools. Since 1949, the language of instruction in all grades has been Spanish. We use this policy change to estimate the effect of English-intensive instruction on the English-language skills of Puerto Ricans. Although naive estimates suggest that English instruction increased English-speaking ability among Puerto Rican natives, estimates that allow for education-specific cohort trends show no effect. This result is surprising in light of the strong presumption by American policymakers at the time that instruction in English was the best way to raise English proficiency. This has implications for medium of instruction policy in former colonies as well as U.S. education policy toward immigrant children.
Keywords: Puerto Rico; Language Policy; English Proficiency; Education Reform
JEL Codes: I28; O15; J15; J24
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| 1949 language reform (P30) | English proficiency among Puerto Ricans (I39) |
| English-intensive instruction (A22) | probability of speaking English (C12) |
| cohort-specific trends (J11) | positive effects of English-intensive instruction on English proficiency (A21) |
| years of exposure to English instruction (A21) | English proficiency (I25) |