School Autonomy's Impact on the Private School Effect: Does Autonomy Mediate the Effect of Private Schools on Student Math and Reading Performance on PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment)?

• In Event: 75.061 - Roundtable Session 34
  In Roundtable Session: 75.061-10 - Comparative Perspectives: Learning From Large International Data Sets

Abstract

This paper explores why private schools outperform public schools in many education systems. School, teacher, and principal autonomy are explored as possible mediating variables for the private school effect on math and reading test scores in all countries or education systems that participated in the 2009 PISA exam. Mediation analysis is conducted using OLS Regression. Curricular autonomy acts as a full mediator of the private school effect on reading performance and a partial mediator of math performance. Principal and teacher involvement in resource and curricular choices are partial mediators of the private school effect. Possible implications are drawn as school level autonomy is manipulable, unlike many other factors related to the private school effect (SES, peer effects, and sorting).

Author

• Ngaire Honey, Vanderbilt University