A Thousand Cuts: Cumulative Lead Exposure Reduces Academic Achievement

Alex Hollingsworth (), Mike Huang, Ivan Rudik and Nicholas Sanders

No 9674, CESifo Working Paper Series from CESifo

Abstract: We study how ambient lead exposure impacts learning in elementary school by leveraging a natural experiment where a large national automotive racing organization switched from leaded to unleaded fuel. We find increased levels and duration of exposure to lead negatively affect academic performance, shift the entire academic performance distribution, and negatively impact both younger and older children. The average treated student in our setting has an expected income reduction of $5,200 in present value terms. Avoiding said treatment has an effect size similar to improving teacher value added by one-fourth of a standard deviation, reducing class size by 5 students, or increasing school spending per pupil by $750. The marginal impacts of lead are larger in impoverished, non-white counties, and among students with greater duration of exposure, even after controlling for the total quantity of exposure.

Keywords: education; air pollution; lead; test scores; children (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I14 I21 Q51 Q53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-edu, nep-env and nep-ure
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Related works:
Working Paper: A Thousand Cuts: Cumulative Lead Exposure Reduces Academic Achievement (2022)
Working Paper: A Thousand Cuts: Cumulative Lead Exposure Reduces Academic Achievement (2020)
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