| Title: |
The Attraction of Magnet Schools: Evidence from Embedded Lotteries in School Assignment. Program on Education Policy and Governance Conference Papers Series. PEPG 25-15 |
| Language: |
English |
| Authors: |
Umut Dur; Robert G. Hammond; Matthew A. Lenard; Melinda Morrill; Thayer Morrill; Colleen Paeplow; Harvard University, Program on Education Policy and Governance (PEPG) |
| Source: |
Program on Education Policy and Governance. 2025. |
| Availability: |
Program on Education Policy and Governance. Harvard University, Kennedy School of Government, 79 John F. Kennedy Street, Taubman 304, Cambridge, MA 02138. Tel: 617-495-7976; Fax: 617-496-4428; e-mail: pepg@fas.harvard.edu; Web site: https://www.hks.harvard.edu/centers/taubman/programs-research/pepg |
| Peer Reviewed: |
N |
| Page Count: |
59 |
| Publication Date: |
2025 |
| Document Type: |
Speeches/Meeting Papers; Reports - Research |
| Education Level: |
Elementary Education |
| Descriptors: |
Magnet Schools; Program Effectiveness; Selective Admission; Learner Engagement; Attendance; Academic Achievement; Academic Persistence; Student Mobility; School Choice; Racial Composition; Socioeconomic Status; Institutional Characteristics; Student Characteristics; Teacher Characteristics; Elementary School Students |
| Geographic Terms: |
North Carolina |
| Abstract: |
Magnet schools provide innovative curricula designed to attract students from other schools within a school district, typically with the joint goals of diversifying enrollment and boosting achievement. Measuring the impact of attending a magnet school is challenging because students choose to apply and schools have priorities over types of students. Moreover, magnet schools may influence non-cognitive skill formation that is not well-reflected in test scores. This study estimates the causal impact of attending a magnet school on student outcomes by leveraging exogenous variation arising from tie breakers embedded in a centralized school assignment mechanism. Using a rich set of administrative data from a large school district, we find robust evidence that attending a magnet school significantly increases student engagement, as measured through absenteeism and on-time progress rates. Students are significantly less likely to change schools when attending a magnet. We find suggestive evidence that attending a magnet school led to higher performance in mathematics and that attending non-language immersion magnet schools increased students' reading scores. Together, these results suggest that magnet schools--a typically understudied school choice option--can benefit student learning and increase student engagement while enabling the system to achieve its goals of promoting racial and socioeconomic balance through school choice. |
| Abstractor: |
As Provided |
| Entry Date: |
2025 |
| Accession Number: |
ED673405 |
| Database: |
ERIC |