Still Worth the Trip? School Busing Effects in Boston and New York. Discussion Paper #2022.12
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| Title: | Still Worth the Trip? School Busing Effects in Boston and New York. Discussion Paper #2022.12 |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Joshua Angrist, Guthrie Gray-Lobe, Clémence Idoux, Parag A. Pathak, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Blueprint Labs |
| Source: | Blueprint Labs. 2024. |
| Availability: | Blueprint Labs. 30 Wadsworth Street. Cambridge, MA 02142. e-mail: contact@mitblueprintlabs.org; Web site: https://blueprintlabs.mit.edu/ |
| Peer Reviewed: | N |
| Page Count: | 71 |
| Publication Date: | 2024 |
| Sponsoring Agency: | Spencer Foundation William T. Grant Foundation |
| Document Type: | Reports - Research Numerical/Quantitative Data |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education Elementary Education Grade 6 Intermediate Grades Middle Schools Grade 9 High Schools Junior High Schools Secondary Education |
| Descriptors: | Busing, School Desegregation, Racial Factors, White Students, African American Students, Asian American Students, Hispanic American Students, School Choice, Student Transportation, Urban Schools, Travel, Academic Achievement, College Attendance, Proximity, Racial Integration, Program Effectiveness, Grade 6, Grade 9 |
| Geographic Terms: | Massachusetts (Boston), New York (New York) |
| Abstract: | School assignment in Boston and New York City came to national attention in the 1970s as courts across the country tried to integrate schools. Today, district-wide choice allows Boston and New York students to enroll far from home. Although 1970s desegregation efforts likely benefited minority students, urban school transportation is increasingly costly and may not generate the gains in learning and educational attainment seen decades ago. We estimate contemporary causal effects of non-neighborhood school attendance and school travel on racial integration, achievement, and college enrollment using an identification strategy that exploits partly-random assignment generated by the Boston and New York school matching algorithms. Instrumental variables estimates suggest distance and travel boost integration for those who choose to travel but have little or no effect on test scores. Travel reduces post-secondary attainment and on-time high school graduation in New York. IV estimates show no human capital gains from travel even for students who indicate a strong preference for non-neighborhood schools. These findings are explained in part by the fact that the schools travelers travel to differ little in value-added terms from schools nearby. Negative effects on college enrollment in New York appear to arise from travel itself rather than diminished college value-added. [Additional funding from the MIT Integrated Learning Initiative.] |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2025 |
| Access URL: | https://blueprintcdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Blueprint-Discussion-Paper-2022.12-revised-Angrist-Gray-Lobe-Idoux-Pathak.pdf |
| Accession Number: | ED664664 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | School assignment in Boston and New York City came to national attention in the 1970s as courts across the country tried to integrate schools. Today, district-wide choice allows Boston and New York students to enroll far from home. Although 1970s desegregation efforts likely benefited minority students, urban school transportation is increasingly costly and may not generate the gains in learning and educational attainment seen decades ago. We estimate contemporary causal effects of non-neighborhood school attendance and school travel on racial integration, achievement, and college enrollment using an identification strategy that exploits partly-random assignment generated by the Boston and New York school matching algorithms. Instrumental variables estimates suggest distance and travel boost integration for those who choose to travel but have little or no effect on test scores. Travel reduces post-secondary attainment and on-time high school graduation in New York. IV estimates show no human capital gains from travel even for students who indicate a strong preference for non-neighborhood schools. These findings are explained in part by the fact that the schools travelers travel to differ little in value-added terms from schools nearby. Negative effects on college enrollment in New York appear to arise from travel itself rather than diminished college value-added. [Additional funding from the MIT Integrated Learning Initiative.] |
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