The Effects of Remedial Mathematics on the Learning of Economics: A Natural Experiment

Johan Lagerlof and Andrew Seltzer ()

No 07/03, Royal Holloway, University of London: Discussion Papers in Economics from Department of Economics, Royal Holloway University of London

Abstract: This paper examines the effects of remedial mathematics on performance in university-level economics courses using a natural experiment. We study exam results prior and subsequent to the implementation of a remedial mathematics course that was compulsory for a sub-set of students and unavailable for the others, controlling for background variables. We find that, consistent with previous studies, the level of and performance in secondary-school mathematics has strong predictive power on students’ performance at university-level economics. However, the evidence for a positive effect of remedial mathematics on student performance is relatively weak and is limited to a few sub-groups of students.

Keywords: remedial mathematics; teaching of economics; difference-in-differences; heterogeneous treatment effects; quantile regressions. (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A22 I20 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2007-08, Revised 2007-08
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