Publications

Effects and Mechanisms of CEO Quality in Public Education

(with Victor Lavy and Adi Boiko)

The Economic Journal, 2023 

‘CEOs’ of public schools in many countries have authority and responsibilities that can greatly affect the quality of schooling. This paper estimates the impact of CEOs on student outcomes in Israeli elementary schools. We estimate CEO quality in two ways—once using schools that do not switch CEOs and once using schools that do. We show that switches are exogenous and are not correlated with potential outcomes. CEO quality positively affects students’ test scores and behavioural outcomes, with pronounced effects for disadvantaged schools. Potential mechanisms show that high-quality CEOs lead to improvements in school priorities, working procedures and violence reduction.

Does Remedial Education at Late Childhood Pay Off After All? Long-Run Consequences for University Schooling, Labor Market Outcomes and Inter-Generational Mobility 

(with Victor Lavy, and Assaf Kott)

Journal of Labor Economics, 2022.

We analyze the long-term effects of a high school remedial education program almost two decades after its implementation. Treated students experienced an 11% increase in completed years of postsecondary schooling, a 4% increase in annual earnings, and a significant increase in intergenerational income mobility. These gains reflect improvement of students mainly from below-median-income families. We conclude that the program had gains beyond the short-term significant improvements in high school matriculation exams. A cost-benefit analysis of the program suggests that the government will recover its cost within 7–8 years, implying a very high rate of return. 

Working Papers

Heads Up: Does Air Pollution Cause Workplace Accidents?

(with Victor Lavy, and Omry Yoresh). 

NBER Working Paper 30715, Under Review. 

Air pollution can adversely affect physiological and cognitive performance. This study estimates the causal effect of increased nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a primary air pollutant, on construction work accidents, a significant factor related to labor market productivity losses. Using data from all construction sites and pollution monitoring stations in Israel, we find a strong and significant effect on accidents, with a 377% (138%) increase on high (moderate) NO2 pollution days compared to clean air levels. Our mechanism analysis suggests the effect is exacerbated under cognitive strain or worker fatigue. A cost-benefit analysis, supported by a nonparametric estimation, examines subsidizing site closures on highly polluted days.

Selected Work In Progress 

Beyond Test Scores: Does Public Information about School Satisfaction and Violence Levels Affect Parental School Choice? 

The Birth of Equality: The Effect of Teacher Childbirth on Student Performance and Gender Specific Differences 

The Substitutability of Religiosity and Quality: School Attribute Information and Parental Choice of School Religiosity