The Labor of Division: Returns to Compulsory High School Math Coursework

Joshua Goodman ()

Working Paper from Harvard University OpenScholar

Abstract: Despite great focus on and public investment in STEM education, little causal evidence connects quantitative coursework to students? economic outcomes. I show that state changes in minimum high school math requirements substantially increase black students? completed math coursework and their later earnings. The marginal student?s return to an additional math course is 10 percent, roughly half the return to a year of high school, and is partly explained by a shift toward more cognitively skilled occupations. Whites? coursework and earnings are unaffected. Rigorous standards for quantitative coursework can close meaningful portions of racial gaps in economic outcomes.

Date: 2017-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-edu
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (11)

Downloads: (external link)
http://scholar.harvard.edu/joshuagoodman/node/95966

Related works:
Journal Article: The Labor of Division: Returns to Compulsory High School Math Coursework (2019)
Working Paper: The Labor of Division: Returns to Compulsory High School Math Coursework (2017)
Working Paper: The Labor of Division: Returns to Compulsory High School Math Coursework (2017)
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:qsh:wpaper:95966

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Working Paper from Harvard University OpenScholar Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Richard Brandon ( this e-mail address is bad, please contact ).