The Impact of Letter Grades on Student Effort,Course Selection,and Major Choice: A Regression-Discontinuity Analysis |
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Authors: | Joyce B Main Ben Ost |
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Institution: | 1. engineering education at Purdue University;2. economics at the University of Illinois at Chicago |
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Abstract: | The authors apply a regression-discontinuity design to identify the causal impact of letter grades on student effort within a course, subsequent credit hours taken, and the probability of majoring in economics. Their methodology addresses key issues in identifying the causal impact of letter grades: correlation with unobservable factors, such as motivation, and direction of causation. They find no evidence that letter grades influence undergraduate students’ course-taking behavior or decision to major in economics. They find that, within a course, the first exam letter grade can affect student performance on the second exam. |
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Keywords: | course selection grades major choice regression-discontinuity |
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