In a Small Moment: Class Size and Moral Hazard in the Mezzogiorno

Joshua Angrist, Erich Battistin () and Daniela Vuri ()

No 20173, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: An instrumental variables (IV) identification strategy that exploits statutory class size caps shows significant achievement gains in smaller classes in Italian primary schools. Gains from small classes are driven mainly by schools in Southern Italy, suggesting a substantial return to class size reductions for residents of the Mezzogiorno. In addition to high unemployment and other social problems, however, the Mezzogiorno is distinguished by pervasive manipulation of standardized test scores, a finding revealed in a natural experiment that randomly assigned school monitors. IV estimates also show that small classes increase score manipulation. Estimates of a causal model for achievement with two endogenous variables, class size and score manipulation, suggest that the effects of class size on measured achievement are driven entirely by the relationship between class size and manipulation. Dishonest scoring appears to be a consequence of teacher shirking more than teacher cheating. These findings show how consequential score manipulation can arise even in assessment systems with few NCLB-style accountability concerns.

JEL-codes: C26 C31 I21 I28 J24 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2014-05
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-edu and nep-ure
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Published as Joshua D. Angrist & Erich Battistin & Daniela Vuri, 2017. "In a Small Moment: Class Size and Moral Hazard in the Italian Mezzogiorno," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, vol 9(4), pages 216-249.

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Related works:
Working Paper: In a Small Moment: Class Size and Moral Hazard in the Mezzogiorno (2015)
Working Paper: In a Small Moment: Class Size and Moral Hazard in the Mezzogiorno (2015)
Working Paper: In a Small Moment: Class Size and Moral Hazard in the Mezzogiorno (2014)
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