Getinet Astatike Haile

Determinants of academic attainment in the United States: A quantile regression analysis of test scores

We investigate the determinants of high school students’ academic attainment in mathematics, reading and science in the United States; focusing particularly on possible differential impacts of ethnicity and family background across the distribution of test scores. Using data from the NELS2000 and employing quantile regression, we find two important results. First, the gaps in mathematics, reading and science test scores among ethnic groups vary across the conditional quantiles of the measured test scores. Specifically, Blacks and Hispanics tend to fare worse in their attainment at higher quantiles, particularly in science. Secondly, the effects of family background factors such as parental education and father’s occupation also vary across quantiles of the test score distribution. The implication of these findings is that the influence racial and family background factors may have on academic attainment, which are commonly identified on the basis of a conditional mean distribution of test scores, may not tell the whole story the attainment discourse has to note.

Child Labour and Child Schooling in Rural Ethiopia: Nature and Trade-Off.

We examine work participation and schooling for children aged 7–15 using survey data from rural Ethiopia. Bivariate probit and age-adjusted educational attainment equations have been estimated. Male children are found to be more likely to attend school than their female counterparts. ‘Specialization’ in child labour is also found, with females more likely to participate in domestic chores while males participate in market work. The likelihood of combining schooling with work is found to increase with family size and ownership of livestock. Importantly, child labour reduces educational attainment of children. Interventions aimed at increasing educational opportunities, reducing poverty, and family planning may be vital in raising educational attainment of children.

Ethnic and Gender Differences in Intergenerational Mobility: A Study of 26-Year-Olds in the USA

This paper uses the traditional income framework and a non-monetary framework to estimate intergenerational mobility in economic status for a sample of 26-year-old whites, blacks and Hispanics in the USA using data from the first and fifth sweeps of the National Educational Longitudinal Study (1988 and 2000). Intergenerational income mobility is found to be greater for males than for females, although there are differences between whites, blacks and Hispanics. Transition probabilities indicate that Hispanics are the most upwardly mobile in terms of educational attainment and occupational status. Ordered logits are used to estimate the impact of parental education and occupation on educational and occupational outcomes.

Union decline in Britain: does gender have anything to do with it?

The paper examines if workplace gender diversity offers some explanation for the decline of unions in Britain. Using the WERS2004 linked employer–employee data and alternative econometric estimators it reports an inverse relationship between workplace union density and gender diversity. Gender and ownership status based sub-group analyses suggest the inverse relationship to be stronger for male union members and those in the private sector. Gender group size-based analysis reveals a positive link between workplace union density and gender diversity in workplaces with a female majority. The findings in this paper may mean that unions may need to embrace the changing workplace demography genuinely to improve their fate.

School Meals and Educational Outcomes in Rural Ethiopia

Abstract We investigate the relationship between providing school meals programmes and educational outcomes in Ethiopia. Using data from school catchment areas across rural Ethiopia, the paper examines the role played by programme modalities and their implementation. The results indicate that supplementing on-site school meals with take-home rations can be beneficial for concentration, reading, writing and arithmetic skills. The timing of the distribution of school meals is also found to play an important role.