Schady, NorbertFilmer, Deon2012-03-192012-03-192009-07-01https://hdl.handle.net/10986/4190There is a strong association between schooling attained and test scores in many settings. If this association is causal, one might expect that programs that increase school enrollment and attainment would also improve test scores. However, if there is self-selection into school based on expected gains, marginal children brought into school by such programs may be drawn disproportionately from the left-hand side of the ability distribution, which could limit the extent to which additional schooling translates into more learning. To test this proposition, this paper uses data from Cambodia. The results show that a program that provides scholarships to poor students had a large effect on school enrollment and attendance, which increased by approximately 25 percentage points. However, there is no evidence that, 18 months after the scholarships were awarded, recipient children did any better on mathematics and vocabulary tests than they would have in the absence of the program. The paper discusses results that suggest that the self-selection of lower-ability students into school in response to the program is an important part of the explanation. The analysis also shows minimal program effects on other outcomes, including knowledge of health practices, expectations about the future, and adolescent mental health.CC BY 3.0 IGOABLE STUDENTSACCESS TO EDUCATIONADOLESCENT GIRLSADOLESCENTSADULTSASSESSMENT EXERCISEATTENDANCE RATESAVERAGE TEST SCOREAVERAGE TEST SCORESBETTER LEARNINGCALLCHILD DEVELOPMENTCLASSROOMCLASSROOMSCOGNITIVE SKILLSCOSTS OF EDUCATIONCROWDED CLASSROOMSDEMAND FOR EDUCATIONDROP-OUTSDROPOUT RATEECONOMIC DEVELOPMENTEDUCATION ECONOMICSEDUCATION EXPENDITURESEDUCATION LEVELSEDUCATION MANAGEMENTEDUCATION OUTCOMESEDUCATION POLICYEDUCATION SYSTEMSEDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENTEDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENTENROLLMENT DATAENROLLMENT LEVELSENROLLMENT RATESETHNIC MINORITYEXAMINATION FEESEXPENDITURESEXPERIENCED TEACHERSFEE WAIVERSFUTURE RESEARCHGIRLS INTO SCHOOLGRADE ENROLLMENTGRADE TESTHEAD-TEACHERSHIGH DROPOUTHIGHER EDUCATIONHIGHER TEST SCORESHUMAN DEVELOPMENTINTERVENTIONSLEARNINGLEARNING ACHIEVEMENTLEARNING IMPACTSLEARNING OUTCOMESLITERATURELOWER SECONDARYLOWER SECONDARY SCHOOLLOWER SECONDARY SCHOOLSMATH TESTMATHEMATICS SKILLSMENTAL HEALTHMINISTRY OF EDUCATIONNATIONAL ASSESSMENTNUMBER OF SCHOOLSNUMBER OF STUDENTSOPEN SCHOOLPAPERSPARENTAL EDUCATIONPRIMARY SCHOOLPRIMARY SCHOOLSPRIVATE SCHOOLPRIVATE SCHOOLINGPRIVATE SCHOOLSPUPIL-TEACHER RATIOSQUALITY SCHOOLSQUALITY TEACHERSRADIOREADINGREGISTRATION FEESREGULAR ATTENDANCERETURNS TO EDUCATIONSCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMSCHOLARSHIP PROGRAMSSCHOLARSHIPSSCHOOL ATTENDANCESCHOOL BREAKFASTSCHOOL CHILDRENSCHOOL CONSTRUCTIONSCHOOL DROPOUTSCHOOL ENROLLMENTSCHOOL FEEDINGSCHOOL FEEDING PROGRAMSSCHOOL FEESSCHOOL LEVELSCHOOL MATERIALSSCHOOL MEALSSCHOOL QUALITYSCHOOL SIZESCHOOL UNIFORMSSCHOOL VISITSCHOOL VISITSSCHOOL VOUCHERSSCHOOL YEARSSCHOOLINGSCHOOLSSECONDARY EDUCATIONSECONDARY SCHOOLSECONDARY SCHOOL CYCLESECONDARY SCHOOLSSKILLS ACQUISITIONSMALL SCHOOLSSTUDENT ACHIEVEMENTSTUDENT-TEACHER RATIOTEACHERTEACHER INCENTIVESTEACHER QUALITYTEACHERSTEACHINGTESTS OF MATHEMATICSTEXTBOOKSTUTORSUNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATIONUNIVERSITY COLLEGEUPPER SECONDARYUPPER SECONDARY EDUCATIONUPPER SECONDARY SCHOOLINGVOUCHERSYOUTHWorld Bank10.1596/1813-9450-4998