| Lars Lefgren
University of Chicago
Relating individual achievement gains to peer effects: An empirical examination of instructional and interaction effects in ability grouping
For at least 70 years, education researchers have discussed the pros and cons of ability grouping. Researchers have also gone to great lengths to determine empirically the effects of ability grouping on the academic achievement of both low and high ability students. Despite these efforts, the findings on the effects of ability grouping have been somewhat equivocal. Additionally, while most past studies have sought to determine the direction and magnitude of effects in well defined instructional settings, there is relatively little evidence indicating how the benefits (costs) of ability grouping are systematically related to average classroom ability or to the variance of abilities within the classroom. The purpose of this project is to examine empirically how individual students' achievement gains in reading and mathematics are related to the mean and variance ofpeer ability in elementary and secondary public schools. For my research, I will use "Prospects: The Congressionally Mandated Study of Educational Growth and Opportunity," a longitudinal database of nearly 40,000 students. The estimation strategy will involve the use of Two-Stage Least Squares and school fixed-effects. I will consider effects driven by instructional differences related to peer ability, as well as peer interaction. I will use the findings to determine who are the winners and losers of ability grouping and other educational programs that lead to a greater or lesser degree of sorting according to academic ability (e.g. voucher programs).
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