Preferences and Heterogeneous Treatment Effects in a Public School Choice Lottery

This paper combines a model of parental school choice with randomized school lotteries in order to understand the effects of being assigned to a first-choice school on academic outcomes. We outline a simple framework in which those who place the highest weight on academics when choosing a school benefit the most academically when admitted. Although the average student does not improve academically when winning a school lottery, this average impact conceals a range of impacts for identifiable subgroups of students. Children of parents whose choices revealed a strong preference for academic quality experienced significant gains in test scores as a result of attending their chosen school, while children whose parents weighted academic characteristics less heavily experienced academic losses. This differential effect is largest for children of parents who forfeit the most in terms of utility gains from proximity and racial match to choose a school with stronger academics. Depending on one's own race and neighborhood, a preference for academic quality can either conflict with or be reinforced by other objectives, such as a desire for proximity and same-race peers.

Parental Preferences and School Competition: Evidence from a Public School Choice Program

This paper uses data from the implementation of a district-wide public school choice plan in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina to estimate preferences for school characteristics and examine their implications for the local educational market. We use parental rankings of their top three choices of schools matched with student demographic and test score data to estimate a mixed-logit discrete choice demand model for schools. We find that parents value proximity highly and the preference attached to a school's mean test score increases with student's income and own academic ability. We also find considerable heterogeneity in preferences even after controlling for income, academic achievement and race, with strong negative correlations between preferences for academics and school proximity. Simulations of parental responses to test score improvements at a school suggest that the demand response at high-performing schools would be larger than the response at low-performing schools, leading to disparate demand-side pressure to improve performance under school choice.

The Effect of Randomized School Admissions on Voter Participation

There is little causal evidence on the effect of economic and policy outcomes on voting behavior. This paper uses randomized outcomes from a school choice lottery to examine if lottery outcomes affect voting behavior in a school board election. We show that losing the lottery has no significant impact on overall voting behavior; however, among white families, those with above median income and prior voting history, lottery losers were significantly more likely to vote than lottery winners. Using propensity score methods, we compare the voting of lottery participants to similar families who did not participate in the lottery. We find that losing the school choice lottery caused an increase in voter turnout among whites, while winning the lottery had no effect relative to non-participants. Overall, our empirical results lend support to models of expressive and retrospective voting, where likely voters are motivated to vote by past negative policy outcomes.

Investigation of the surgical endoscopic approaches used in the management of navicular bursa sepsis in the horse

Reasons for performing this study: Despite improvements in clinical outcome following treatment of synovial sepsis in horses, the prognosis for survival following septic navicular bursitis remains guarded, whilst the prognosis for athletic activity is considered poor. Surgical intervention is deemed essential for resolution. Two different surgical endoscopic approaches to the bursa have been described, however only the use of the direct approach has been reported in the management of clinical sepsis. The risk of inadvertent penetration of adjacent synovial structures with this approach is reported but has not been quantified. A transthecal approach, via the digital flexor tendon sheath, is considered to involve fewer complications than the direct approach but is typically reserved for elective examination of the aseptic bursa. The use of this approach in sepsis has not been evaluated. Intravenous regional limb perfusion with antimicrobials is an established adjunct in the management of synovial sepsis and is suggested to improve case outcome. The synovial concentrations of antimicrobial achieved following IVRP in case’s of clinical sepsis have not been established. Objectives: To quantify the risk of inadvertent synovial structure penetration when making a direct surgical endoscopic approach to the navicular bursa. To determine a safer direct approach, with reduced risk of inadvertent synovial penetration. · To review the outcome of clinical case’s of navicular bursa sepsis following surgical management via the transthecal endoscopic approach and post-operative management involving intravenous regional limb perfusion with amikacin. To compare these outcomes with those reported following management via the direct approach. · To investigate the concentrations of amikacin achieved in synovial fluid following IVRP in clinical case’s of synovial sepsis. Hypotheses: · There is significant risk of inadvertently penetrating the distal interphalangeal joint and/or digital flexor tendon sheath when making a direct surgical endoscopic approach to the navicular bursa, with attendant potential for contamination of these structures when managing septic bursitis. Making the approach as abaxial as possible and advancing the instrument in a sagittal trajectory will minimise the risk of inadvertent synovial penetration. · The prognoses for survival and return to athletic function following surgical management of navicular bursa sepsis via the transthecal approach, in addition to post-operative intravenous regional perfusion with amikacin, are comparable with those reportedly managed via the direct approach. The surgical technique permits simplified postoperative intrasynovial medication and monitoring of synovial fluid parameters by establishing communication between the bursa and tendon sheath · Following regional intravenous limb perfusion, the levels of amikacin accumulated in contaminated synovial structures are greater than the minimum inhibitory concentration for commonly encountered bacteria, potentially validating the contribution of perfusion techniques as adjunct therapies in treating synovial sepsis. Methods: · Using 40 cadaver horse limbs, a conventional endoscopic approach, was made to the lateral aspect of the navicular bursa of each limb. Successful entry was confirmed endoscopically. Centesis and distension of the DFTS and DIPJ were performed to determine whether communication with the arthroscopic portal or bursa had occurred. Positive contrast radiographic navicular bursograms were performed to identify iatrogenic communication with the DFTS and/or DIPJ. A pilot study employing a modified approach was performed. · The case records of 10 horses presented with navicular bursa contamination, which underwent therapeutic surgical endoscopy of the navicular bursa via a transthecal approach and received post-operative intravenous regional perfusion with amikacin were evaluated retrospectively. Follow-up information was obtained by telephone questionnaire. · Intravenous regional limb perfusion with amikacin was performed on clinical case’s of synovial sepsis and synovial fluid was aspirated from the contaminated synovial cavity 30 minutes later. Synovial fluid amikacin concentration was then measured. Results: · Using the direct surgical approach to the navicular bursa, inadvertent penetration of a synovial structure occurred in 45% of the limbs (digital flexor tendon sheath 37.5%, distal interphalangeal joint 17.5%, and both structures 10%). Incidence amongst the surgeons ranged 10-70%. Inadvertent penetration did not occur when using a modified approach. · Of the 10 horses with septic navicular bursitis treated via transthecal endoscopic lavage and post-operative regional intravenous perfusion: 9 horses survived to long term follow up (>12 months). Eight returned to athletic function, 7 performed at their pre-injury level of athletic activity. One achieved a lower level of activity, 1 was retired, and 1 was euthanased. · Synovial fluid concentration of amikacin achieved in excess of the minimum inhibitory concentration in 90% samples and 10-12 times minimum inhibitory concentration in 62.3% samples. The DFTS sample group recorded the highest individual sample concentration (391mg/L) as well as the highest group mean (175.1) and median (181). The lowest individual result came from a TCJ, and proximal group had the lowest mean (43.3) and median (26.9) values. Conclusions: · There is significant risk of inadvertent penetration of the digital flexor tendon sheath and/or distal interphalangeal joint when making a direct surgical endoscopic approach to the navicular bursa. Individual surgeon interpretation and application of the described technique appears to influence the incidence of inadvertent synovial penetration. Further investigation of the modified technique is necessary. · Endoscopic lavage of the navicular bursa via a transthecal approach was a safe and effective surgical treatment. When combined with postoperative intravenous regional limb perfusion, the prognosis for survival and return to previous level of athletic function were comparable with the published outcomes using a direct endoscopic approach. Postoperative intrasynovial medication and monitoring of synovial fluid parameters is potentially simplified by establishment of communication between the bursa and tendon sheath, however further investigation is required to determine the duration of patency. · Intravenous regional limb perfusion achieves therapeutic concentrations of amikacin within contaminated synovial cavities when using the described protocol. Potential Clinical Relevance: Use of the direct surgical endoscopic approach to the navicular bursa incurs the potential risk of inadvertent contamination of adjacent synovial structures. Whilst the transthecal approach intentionally involves an aseptic synovial structure, this is consequently thoroughly lavaged and the post-operative communication between synovial structures allows for convenient synovial medication and sampling. Use of intravenous perfusion with amikacin in clinical sepsis has the potential to improve case outcome

Content learning and identity construction (CLIC): a framework to strengthen African American students’ mathematics and science learning in urban elementary schools

We present a theoretical framework that views learning as a process involving content learning (CL) and identity construction (IC). We view identities as lenses through which people make sense of, and position themselves, through stories and actions, and as lenses for understanding how they are positioned by others. As people become more (or less) central members of a disciplinary community (e.g., a science or mathematics classroom) and engage (or not) in various cultural practices, changes in identity and knowledge accompany changes in position and status. Identity construction (IC) and content learning (CL) share an important characteristic: they both involve meaning making. For IC, it is the development of reasoned, coordinated, coherent, and meaningful ways of seeing one’s self in relation to communities, and for CL, it centers on the development of disciplinary concepts, processes, tools, language, discourse, and norms within practices. Focusing on Black students in mathematics and science classrooms, we claim that three intersecting identities are particularly important: disciplinary identity (as doers of the discipline, i.e., mathematics and science), racial identity (emerging understandings of what it means to be Black), and academic identity (as participants in academic tasks and classroom practices). In this paper, we elaborate on the CLIC framework as a useful tool for understanding how Black students negotiate participation in, and come to see themselves as doers of science and mathematics in their school classrooms. We synthesize empirical findings from our research with younger and older students, as well as with parents and community members, to illustrate dimensions of this framework

Gender and Performance: Evidence from School Assignment by Randomized Lottery

School choice programs are intended to improve student achievmement, by allowing for better matches between students and schools. However, it is not clear that academic achievement will improve if parents make school choice decisions over both academic and non-academic school attributes (Justine Hastings et al., 2005a,b). Indeed, many randomized studies of impacts of school choice find little or no effect of school choice on academic outcomes. For example, initial evaluations of randomized voucher experiments in Milwaukee and New York City found modest academic impacts on eligible students (John F. Witte, et al. 1995; Daniel P. Mayer et al., 2002).1 More recently, evaluations of public school choice lotteries in Chicago and Charlotte have found no difference between the average lottery winner and loser in academic outcomes such as test scores (Julie Cullen et al., 2003; Hastings et al., 2005b). When parents are choosing schools for academic and non-academic reasons, school choice may increase utility but not necessarily improve academic outcomes. There is growing evidence that educational interventions may have heterogeneous treatment effects by gender. Analysis of the Moving To Opportunity demonstration, i

Rictor/TORC2 Regulates Fat Metabolism, Feeding, Growth and Life Span in C. elegans

Rictor is a component of the target of rapamycin complex 2 (TORC2). While TORC2 has been implicated in insulin and other growth factor signaling pathways, the key inputs and outputs of this kinase complex remain unknown. We identified mutations in the Caenorhabditis elegans homolog of rictor in a forward genetic screen for increased body fat. Despite high body fat, rictor mutants are developmentally delayed, small in body size, lay an attenuated brood, and are short-lived, indicating that Rictor plays a critical role in appropriately partitioning calories between long-term energy stores and vital organismal processes. Rictor is also necessary to maintain normal feeding on nutrient-rich food sources. In contrast to wild-type animals, which grow more rapidly on nutrient-rich bacterial strains, rictor mutants display even slower growth, a further reduced body size, decreased energy expenditure, and a dramatically extended life span, apparently through inappropriate, decreased consumption of nutrient-rich food. Rictor acts directly in the intestine to regulate fat mass and whole-animal growth. Further, the high-fat phenotype of rictor mutants is genetically dependent on akt-1, akt-2, and serum and glucocorticoid-induced kinase-1 (sgk-1). Alternatively, the life span, growth, and reproductive phenotypes of rictor mutants are mediated predominantly by sgk-1. These data indicate that Rictor/TORC2 is a nutrient-sensitive complex with outputs to AKT and SGK to modulate the assessment of food quality and signal to fat metabolism, growth, feeding behavior, reproduction, and life span

School Choice, School Quality, and Postsecondary Attainment

We study the impact of a public school choice lottery in Charlotte- Mecklenburg schools on college enrollment and degree completion. We find a significant overall increase in college attainment among lottery winners who attend their first-choice school. Using rich administrative data on peers, teachers, course offerings, and other inputs, we show that the impacts of choice are strongly predicted by gains on several measures of school quality. Gains in attainment are concentrated among girls. Girls respond to attending a better school with higher grades and increases in college-preparatory course taking, while boys do not

School Choice, School Quality and Postsecondary Attainment

We study the impact of a public school choice lottery in Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools on college enrollment and degree completion. We find a significant overall increase in college attainment among lottery winners who attend their first choice school. Using rich administrative data on peers, teachers, course offerings and other inputs, we show that the impacts of choice are strongly predicted by gains on several measures of school quality. Gains in attainment are concentrated among girls. Girls respond to attending a better school with higher grades and increases in college-preparatory course-taking, while boys do not.