Study time halved during Corona crisis
The time children spent on school-related activities per day decreased from 7.4 to 3.6 hours during school closures. This is the result of a survey of more than 1,000 parents conducted in June by the ifo Center for Economics of Education. At the same time, the time spent with TV, computer games, and cell phones increased from 4.0 to 5.2 hours per day. More than half of the students (57%) had group online lessons less than once a week, only 6% daily. Students had even less individual contact with their teachers. Children with non-academic family backgrounds and low-achieving students were particularly affected. Large majorities of the German population support compulsory online lessons when schools are closed (79%), directives for teachers to contact students on a daily basis (78%), and more intensive support for children from disadvantaged backgrounds (83%). more...
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Germans support more unity and comparability in the education system
The ifo Education Survey 2020 surveyed over 10,000 adults on their opinions about educational federalism. The majority of Germans (60%) favor that the most important educational policy decisions are made by the federal government and not by the states. In the school system, the majority sees responsibility for framework regulations such as curricula as lying with the federal government, while the schools themselves should be responsible for selecting teachers and deciding how to use resources. 83% of Germans support a State Treaty on Education with binding requirements. Clear majorities support reform proposals such as regular student achievement tests for state comparisons (76%) and a common-core school-leaving examination (84%). more...
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German Academy of Sciences: For a crisis-resistant education system
The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina has published an ad hoc statement on the "Coronavirus pandemic: For a crisis-resistant education system" to which Ludger Woessmann from the ifo Center for the Economics of Education contributed. It outlines measures to make the education system more resilient under crisis conditions and covers seven fields of action: maintaining access to educational institutions; concepts for blending face-to-face and distance learning; secure digital infrastructure that complies with data-protection regulations; supporting educational specialists and teachers in the professional use of digital media; strengthening the cooperation with parents and families; supporting children with learning and performance deficits; and strengthening the knowledge and information base. more...
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Patience and risk-taking fundamental to international student achievement
Cultural traits that steer intertemporal decision-making are fundamental to educational investment decisions. To understand how they contribute to international differences in student achievement, a new paper by Eric Hanushek from Stanford University and Lavinia Kinne, Philipp Lergetporer, and Ludger Woessmann from the ifo Center for the Economics of Education combines PISA tests with the Global Preference Survey. The results show that opposing effects of patience (positive) and risk-taking (negative) together account for two-thirds of the cross-country variation in student achievement. Similar results are found in models that assign migrant students the cultural traits of their countries of origin. Overall, a culture of patience may foster educational investment, whereas a culture of risk aversion may discourage students from getting into trouble, thus spurring effort in studying. more...
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Information on educational inequality influences policy preferences
In a paper just published in the Journal of Public Economics, Philipp Lergetporer, Katharina Werner, and Ludger Woessmann from the ifo Center for the Economics of Education investigate how information about educational inequality affects public concerns and policy preferences. To this end, they device survey experiments in representative samples of the German population. Providing information about the extent of educational inequality strongly increases the share of the population who view educational inequality a serious problem from 55 to 68 percent. The information provision also affects support for equity-oriented education policies (which have high baseline support). Providing information also has a clear effect on support for compulsory preschool, which increases further if respondents are informed about policy effectiveness. more...
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More equal distribution leads to higher prosperity in the long term
What are the long-term economic effects of a more equal distribution of wealth? Natalie Obergruber explores this question together with Charlotte Bartels from the DIW Berlin and Simon Jäger from the MIT in a new working paper that has emerged from a chapter of her PhD thesis written at the ifo Center for the Economics of Education. They exploit variation in historical inequality of land ownership resulting from different inheritance rules. In some areas, inherited land was divided between children, in others, only one child was the heir. A comparison of neighboring areas with different inheritance rules shows that areas with a historically more equal distribution have higher incomes, skills, and wealth today. more...
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Religion in economic history
How did religion and religious beliefs in God and the afterlife affect economic history? And how did historical socioeconomic circumstances shape religious beliefs and activities? A comprehensive review article prepared for the Handbook of Historical Economics by Sascha Becker of Monash University, Jared Rubin of Chapman University, and Ludger Woessmann highlights three general insights from the rapidly growing literature: First, the monotheistic character of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam facilitated a close historical interconnection of religion with political power and conflict. Second, education often played a central role in the connection between religion and economic history. Third, many socioeconomic factors played a role in the historical development of religions. more...
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A EUROPEAN PERSPECTIVE: EENEE
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IN THE INTERNATIONAL NEWS
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Will schools and universities ever return to normal?
Foreign Policy asks nine experts about the future of education after the pandemic, including Ludger Woessmann.
How the Corona virus pandemic affects the global youth
International TV channel Deutsche Welle (DW News) talks to Ludger Woessmann on August 7, 2020 about the economic consequences of Corona-related school closures (from minute 5).
German girls more studious, boys on screens during pandemic
The ifo survey on education during the Corona crisis is covered by nationalpost.com, dailymail.co.uk, and nypost.com.
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Economic costs of the Corona crisis
TV interview with Ludger Woessmann on the costs of lost learning on ARD Extra: Die Corona-Lage – a widely viewed feature on the pandemic at the main German public TV channel – on June 18, 2020 (from minute 13).
Homeschooling: Did not learn much
In ARD Morgenmagazin and Tagesschau, two main German news shows, Ludger Woessmann reports on the ifo study about the effects of the Corona-related school closures on students' learning time on August 5, 2020.
Study time halved by Corona
Many other media cover the study, such as Die Zeit, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Die Welt, Spiegel online, bild.de, Tagesspiegel, Berliner Zeitung, Augsburger Allgemeine, wiwo.de, focus.de, wdr.de, n-tv.de, and taz.de. A video contribution on welt.de also reports on the new findings.
Little help for weak students, less study time
In several radio interviews, Ludger Woessmann talks about the study on education during the Corona crisis, for example at Deutschlandfunk, SWR Aktuell, WDR5, and NDR Kultur.
This is devastating
In his influential education blog, Jan-Martin Wiarda interviews Ludger Woessmann about the loss of learning during the school closures and its consequences.
Education is increasingly becoming a luxury good
In an interview on sueddeutsche.de, Katharina Werner talks about education as a luxury good during the pandemic.
More unity desired in education
Philipp Lergetporer reports on the results of the ifo Education Survey 2020 on educational federalism in the Rundschau Magazin on BR Television.
Who is to decide about education?
Philipp Lergetporer speaks about the results of the ifo Education Survey in the radio magazines "Campus und Karriere" at Deutschlandfunk and the NDR Info Redezeit.
Majority wants less hotchpotch
The ifo Education Survey 2020 is also taken up by many other media, for example Spiegel online, Süddeutsche Zeitung, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Die Welt, tagesschau.de, ZDFheute, Zeit online, wiwo.de, and Wiarda Blog.
The impact of education on social prosperity
As a studio guest in the Abendschau on BR Television on July 21, 2020, Ludger Woessmann explains the connection between education and prosperity and what this means in times of Corona (from minute 11).
Beware if the schools close again!
Since the last newsletter, many other media have again been reporting on the expertise of the ifo Center for the Economics of Education on the economic consequences of the Corona-related loss of learning. A small selection: Handelsblatt, Deutschlandfunk "Campus & Karriere", bild.de, WDR 5 "Politikum", Die Welt, sueddeutsche.de, NZZ Online, Wirtschaftswoche, Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, Tagesspiegel, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, and Focus.
National Academy demands clear concepts for starting school
Numerous media report on the statement of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina to which Ludger Woessmann contributed. Examples include Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and Spiegel online.
Only the best for the children
An article in the business magazine "unternehmen [!]" of Südwest Presse quotes Ludger Woessmann on competition by private schools.
Historical differences between East and West Germany
Radio feature in the program "Aus Kultur- und Sozialwissenschaften" on Deutschlandfunk about the research of Sascha Becker, Lukas Mergele, and Ludger Woessmann on the historical differences between East and West Germany.
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Virtual PhD Workshop on "Causal Analyses of School Reforms"
Because the lack of outside interaction due to COVID-19 hits young researchers particularly hard, the project "Efficiency and Equity in Education: Quasi-Experimental Evidence from School Reforms across German States (EffEE)" will organize a virtual PhD Workshop on "Causal Analyses of School Reforms" on October 8 and 9. Twelve junior scientists will present their papers that had been accepted for the EffEE conference planned in May (which had to be cancelled due to COVID-19). The keynote speakers will be Margherita Fort (University of Bologna) and Steffen Schindler (University of Bamberg). Nine senior scientists of EffEE's international network – including Eric Hanushek (Stanford), Edwin Leuven (Oslo), Susanna Loeb (Brown), and Helena Skyt Nielsen (Aarhus) – will participate in the workshop and provide feedback on the junior scientists' projects.
ifo Award for PIAAC project
The contribution of the ifo Center for Economics of Education to the project "Acquisition and Utilization of Adult Skills – A Network for Analysing, Developing and Disseminating PIAAC" was awarded the ifo Award for Third-Party Funded Research at the ifo Annual Meeting 2020. A short video introduces the project.
Press conferences on survey results
The results of the survey "Education in the Corona Crisis" as well as the results of the ifo Education Survey 2020 on the topic "Unity and Comparability in the Education System" were presented at two press conferences that are now available online.
Second DIAL EU Stakeholder Meeting
Larissa Zierow presented results of the IMCHILD project at the second DIAL EU Stakeholder Meeting on the topic "Overcoming Childhood Disadvantages", which was organized virtually.
CEPS and EconPol Europe Lunch Debate
Larissa Zierow was also discussant at the CEPS and EconPol Europe Lunch Debate September 2020 on educational policy and equality of opportunity, with special focus on the Corona crisis.
Presentations at scientific conferences
Ludger Woessmann gave a keynote lecture at the World Literacy Summit 2020, which is now available online.
Numerous employees of the ifo Center for the Economics of Education participated in conferences, which unfortunately had to take place online this year:
Lavinia Kinne presented the paper "Culture and Student Achievement: The Intertwined Roles of Patience and Risk-Taking" at the 12th World Congress of the Econometric Society and at the EEA Congress 2020.
Lukas Mergele held the presentation "The Earlier, the Better? Grading in Primary School and Student Achievement" at the EEA Congress 2020, the 76th Annual Congress of the IIPF, and the 12th World Congress of the Econometric Society.
Sven Resnjanskij presented the paper "Individualism, Human Capital Formation, and Labor Market Outcomes - International Evidence from an Adult Skill Assessment" at the 12th World Congress of the Econometric Society.
Katharina Wedel presented "The Impact of Instruction Time on Student Achievement: The Moderating Role of Teacher Qualifications" at the 76th Annual Congress of the IIPF and the EEA Congress 2020.
Ludger Woessmann gave a presentation on "The Political Economy of Higher Education Finance: How Information and Design Affect Public Preferences for Tuition" at the EALE SOLE AASLE World Conference.
Larissa Zierow presented "The Baby Year Parental Leave Reform in the GDR and Its Impact on Children's Long-Term Life Satisfaction" at the EALE SOLE AASLE World Conference.
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Articles in refereed journals
Eric A. Hanushek and Ludger Woessmann, "A Quantitative Look at the Economic Impact of the European Union's Educational Goals", Education Economics 28 (3): 225-244, 2020.
Philipp Lergetporer, Katharina Werner and Ludger Woessmann, "Educational Inequality and Public Policy Preferences: Evidence from Representative Survey Experiments", Journal of Public Economics 188: 104226, 2020.
Lukas Mergele and Michael Weber, "Public Employment Services Under Decentralization: Evidence from a Natural Experiment", Journal of Public Economics 182: 104113, 2020.
Markus Nagler, Marc Piopiunik and Martin R. West, "Weak Markets, Strong Teachers: Recession at Career Start and Teacher Effectiveness", Journal of Labor Economics 38 (2): 453-500, 2020.
Working papers
Charlotte Bartels, Simon Jäger and Natalie Obergruber, "Long-Term Effects of Equal Sharing: Evidence from Inheritance Rules for Land", IZA Discussion Paper 13665, September 2020.
Sascha O. Becker, Jared Rubin and Ludger Woessmann, "Religion in Economic History: A Survey", CESifo Working Paper 8365, June 2020.
Eric A. Hanushek, Lavinia Kinne, Philipp Lergetporer and Ludger Woessmann, "Culture and Student Achievement: The Intertwined Roles of Patience and Risk-Taking", NBER Working Paper 27484, July 2020.
Further articles
Sascha O. Becker, Jared Rubin and Ludger Woessmann, "Recent Insights on the Role of Religion in Economic History", VoxEU, 12.07.2020.
Eric A. Hanushek, Lavinia Kinne, Philipp Lergetporer and Ludger Woessmann, "Patience, Risk-Taking, and International Differences in Student Achievement", VoxEU, 02.08.2020.
German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, "Coronavirus-Pandemie: Für ein krisenresistentes Bildungssystem (Coronavirus Pandemic: For a Crisis-Resistant Education System)", Halle: Leopoldina, 2020.
Ludger Woessmann, Vera Freundl, Elisabeth Grewenig, Philipp Lergetporer, Katharina Werner and Larissa Zierow, "Bildung in der Coronakrise: Wie haben die Schulkinder die Zeit der Schulschließungen verbracht, und welche Bildungsmaßnahmen befürworten die Deutschen?" (Education in the Corona Crisis: How Did School Children Spend their Time during the School Closures, and Which Educational Measures Do the Germans Support?), ifo Schnelldienst 73 (9):
25-39, 2020.
Ludger Woessmann, Philipp Lergetporer, Vera Freundl, Elisabeth Grewenig and Katharina Werner, "Deutsche sind für mehr Einheitlichkeit und Vergleichbarkeit im Bildungssystem – Ergebnisse des ifo Bildungsbarometers 2020" (Germans Favor More Unity and Comparability in the Education System – Results of the ifo Education Survey 2020), ifo Schnelldienst 73 (9):
40-48, 2020.
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