Sample Selectivity and the Validity of International Student Achievement Tests in Economic Research

Eric Hanushek and Ludger Woessmann

No 4926, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Critics of international student comparisons argue that results may be influenced by differences in the extent to which countries adequately sample their entire student populations. In this research note, we show that larger exclusion and non-response rates are related to better country average scores on international tests, as are larger enrollment rates for the relevant age group. However, accounting for sample selectivity does not alter existing research findings that tested academic achievement can account for a majority of international differences in economic growth and that institutional features of school systems have important effects on international differences in student achievement.

Keywords: educational production; international student achievement tests; economic growth; sample selection (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: C83 H4 I20 O40 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 19 pages
Date: 2010-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-edu and nep-lab
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Published - published in: Economics Letters, 2011, 110 (2), 79-82

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Related works:
Journal Article: Sample selectivity and the validity of international student achievement tests in economic research (2011)
Working Paper: Sample selectivity and the validity of international student achievement tests in economic research (2011)
Working Paper: Sample Selectivity and the Validity of International Student Achievement Tests in Economic Research (2010)
Working Paper: Sample Selectivity and the Validity of International Student Achievement Tests in Economic Research (2010)
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