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The Attraction of Magnet Schools: Evidence from Embedded Lotteries in School Assignment

Citation:

U. Dur, B. Hammond, M.A. Lenard, M. Morrill, T. Morrill, and C. Paeplow. Submitted. “The Attraction of Magnet Schools: Evidence from Embedded Lotteries in School Assignment”. Working Paper

Abstract:

Magnet schools aim to diversify enrollment by providing innovative curricula to attract students from other schools within a school district.  Measuring the impact of attending a magnet is challenging because students choose to apply and schools have priorities over types of students. This study estimates the causal impact of attending a magnet school by leveraging exogenous variation arising from tie breakers embedded in a centralized school assignment mechanism. Attending a magnet led to higher performance in mathematics, and non-language immersion magnet schools also increased students' reading scores.  Magnet schools also significantly increase student engagement, suggesting improved non-cognitive skill formation.
Last updated on 03/07/2022