The Impact of Female Teachers on Female Students’ Lifetime Well-Being

David Card, Ciprian Domnisoru, Seth Sanders, Lowell Taylor and Victoria Udalova

Working Papers from U.S. Census Bureau, Center for Economic Studies

Abstract: We document an enduring influence of female primary school teachers on their female students in rural America circa 1940. Using historical US Census data linked to IRS records, later censuses, and death records, we find that exposure to female teachers significantly improved girls’ educational attainment—particularly among those with poorly-educated parents and in areas with limited labor market opportunities for women. These educational gains translated into delayed marriage and childbearing, marriage matches to better-educated husbands and higher household income. We also find that exposure to female teachers increased longevity of women relative to men.

Keywords: Female Teachers; Education and Gender Equality; Education and Mortality (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-06
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https://www2.census.gov/library/working-papers/2026/adrm/ces/CES-WP-26-39.pdf First version, 2026 (application/pdf)

Related works:
Working Paper: The Impact of Female Teachers on Female Students' Lifetime Well-Being (2022)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cen:wpaper:26-39

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