Working Paper: NBER ID: w31756
Authors: Brian A. Jacob; Michael D. Ricks
Abstract: This paper presents the first evidence of how students make career technical education (CTE) course-taking decisions. Among the universe of Michigan high-schoolers we find large disparities in CTE access and participation by gender, race, and income. We decompose participation gaps between supply (access) and demand (preferences) with a simple discrete choice model. We find that student preferences for CTE content drive participation gaps by gender, inequities in access drive gaps by income, and school-level supply and demand factors combine to create the gaps by race. Policy simulations highlight the importance of accessible CTE delivery models within comprehensive high schools.
Keywords: Career Technical Education; CTE; student preferences; program availability; participation gaps
JEL Codes: I0; I20; I21; I28; J01; J08
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| male-female participation gap (J16) | demand factors (J23) |
| demand factors (J23) | female participation in CTE (Z22) |
| income participation gap (E25) | supply factors (J23) |
| supply factors (J23) | lower-income family access to CTE (I24) |
| racial participation gap (J15) | school-level factors (I24) |
| school-level factors (I24) | participation in CTE for students in predominantly Black schools (I24) |
| racial participation gap (J15) | supply factors (J23) |
| racial participation gap (J15) | demand factors (J23) |