Title

The Effect of Occupational Licensing Stringency on the Teacher Quality Distribution

Author(s)

Bradley Larsen Bradley Larsen (Stanford University)

Ziao Ju Ziao Ju (Stanford University)

Adam Kapor Adam Kapor (Princeton University)

Chuan Yu Chuan Yu (Stanford University)

Abstract

Concerned about the low academic ability of public school teachers, in the 1990s and 2000s, some states increased licensing stringency to weed out low-quality candidates, while others decreased restrictions to attract high-quality candidates. We offer a theoretical model justifying both reactions. Using data from 1991–2007 on licensing requirements and teacher quality—as measured by the selectivity of teachers’ undergraduate institutions—we find that stricter licensing requirements, especially those emphasizing academic coursework, increase the left tail of the quality distribution for secondary school teachers without significantly decreasing quality for high-minority or high-poverty districts.

Creation Date

2020-12

Section URL ID

Paper Number

2020-3

URL

https://www.nber.org/system/files/working_papers/w28158/w28158.pdf

File Function

Jel

I2, J2, J4, J5, K2, K31, L5, L8

Keyword(s)

Education, Teacher licensing

Suppress

false

Series

13