Working Paper: NBER ID: w30870
Authors: Julian R. Betts; Andrew C. Zau; Karen Volz Bachofer; Dina Polichar
Abstract: The paper evaluates math performance at four high-need middle schools during a four-year intervention, which was designed to help math teachers diagnose students’ areas of need and to design lesson plans responsive to those needs. Before the intervention began, the researchers pre-selected four comparison schools by matching based on achievement and also on demographics. A difference-in-difference analysis finds a significant increase of about 0.11 standard deviation in test scores per year for students in the program schools. Supplementary event study and synthetic control analyses to detect year-by-year effects lack precision but are weakly suggestive of a smaller impact in year 1 than later years. A cost analysis considers the affordability of extending similar programs.
Keywords: math performance; middle school; intervention; educational reform
JEL Codes: I21; I24; I28
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| increased teacher interaction with peer coach (A21) | increased math test scores (C12) |
| CTO intervention (C24) | increased effectiveness over time (C41) |
| CTO intervention (C24) | increased math test scores (C12) |
| CTO intervention (C24) | changes in math test scores over time (C12) |