Answering an Old Question With New Data: Estimating the Effect of Private Education in the United States Using PISA 2018 Data

• In Event: Thursday Roundtable Session 12:40 pm
  In Roundtable Session: Perspectives on Market-Based Education (Table 28)

Abstract

The objective of this study is to assess the impact of private versus public education on students' educational achievement, utilizing data from the 2018 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) survey. To address potential self-selection bias, the study employs various statistical techniques based on propensity scores (PS), including inverse probability treatment weighting (IPTW), PS with stratification, PS with full matching, and augmented inverse propensity weighting (AIPW).

Further analysis of the effect heterogeneity revealed interesting patterns. Specifically, students from low-income families and disadvantaged backgrounds seemed to benefit from private education. This highlights the potential usefulness of school choice programs as an educational policy intervention to address the growing educational achievement gap and promote equity in education within the United States.

Author

• Sangbaek Park, University of Louisville