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We document the characteristics of children and young adults identified in the Panel Study of Income Dynamics as having a learning disability and study whether legislative changes in diagnosis criteria have had a noticeable effect determining who receives a diagnosis. We further document that children and young adults identified as a having a learning disability experience less desirable outcomes early in life, including trouble with the police, drug use, violent behavior, incarceration, self-reported low levels of well-being, lower educational attainment, and less favorable labor market outcomes. We also find that the mothers of children diagnosed with learning disabilities are less likely than other mothers to participate in the labor market.

This paper assesses the reliability and validity of cognitive and socioemotional skills measures and investigates the correlation between schooling, skills acquisition, and labor earnings. The primary data from Pakistan incorporates two innovations related to measurement and sampling. On measurement, the paper develops and implements a battery of instruments intended to capture cognitive and socioemotional skills among young adults. On sampling, the paper uses a panel that follows respondents from their original rural locations in 2003 to their residences in 2018, a period over which 38 percent of the respondents left their native villages. In terms of their validity and reliability, our skills measures compare favorably to previous measurement attempts in low- and middle-income countries. The following are documented in the data: (a) more years of schooling are correlated with higher cognitive and socioemotional skills; (b) labor earnings are correlated with cognitive and socioemotional skills as well as years of schooling; and (c) the earnings-skills correlations depend on respondents' migration status. The magnitudes of the correlations between schooling and skills on the one hand and earnings and skills on the other are consistent with a widespread concern that such skills are under-produced in the schooling system. [This report was prepared by the World Bank Group's Development Research Group, Development Economics. Funding was provided by RISE and World Bank's Strategic Research Program Fund.]

The purpose of this occasional paper is to compare point estimates and trends included in the Monitoring the Future (MTF) Panel Study annual report: "National Data on Substance Use among Adults Ages 19 to 60, 1976-2021" prepared using historical post-stratification weights, with the same point estimates and trends obtained when using MTF age-specific panel analysis weights. The current report is organized into four sections: (1) Part 1: Overview of Old and New Weighting Methods; (2) Comparison Approach and Summary; (3) Differences Observed Between Old and New Weighting Approaches, by Substance; and (4) Updated Panel Report Figures and Tables. Evaluating the impact of the new MTF panel analysis weights on point estimates and trends reported in the MTF panel annual report for 1976-2021 indicates that, overall, 63.1% of all point estimate comparisons exhibited less than a |5%| mean change between weighting approaches. Further, no trend comparisons indicated a sign flip, and 87.1% were substantively unchanged in regards to trend significance. [For "National Data on Substance Use among Adults Ages 19 to 60, 1976-2021," see ED623992.]

Calls are intensifying for workforce reskilling and a re-engineering of education and training to meet the demands of the future. Current policy in England focuses on technical, digital and green economy skills, underpinned by strong literacy and numeracy and a knowledge-rich school curriculum. National Foundation for Educational Research's Nuffield-funded research study, "The Skills Imperative 2035: Essential skills for tomorrow's workforce" investigates: (1) which essential employment skills will be most needed in 2035; (2) what will their likely supply be and where will the gaps be; (3) which occupations and workers are most at risk of not having these skills; (4) which skills will affected workers need to develop to transition into new employment opportunities; and (5) the role of educators and employers in helping to prepare young people and workers for the future labour market. This first report, a review drawing on a wide-ranging and growing evidence base, sets the scene for the wider research study by bringing together what the literature suggests about: (1) what the world of work will look like in 2035; and (2) which essential employment skills will be in demand and how what should be done to prepare.

This occasional paper presents subgroup findings from the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study on levels of, and trends in, the use of a number of substances for nationally representative samples of high school graduates ages 19-30, "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2018. Volume II, College Students & Adults Ages 19-60" (see ED599071). The data have been gathered in a series of follow-up surveys of representative subsamples of high school seniors who were first surveyed in 12th grade as part of the MTF study. Data were first available for the 19-22 age group in 1980 and for the older age groups in subsequent years as the early cohorts progressed in age, as the tables and figures in this occasional paper indicate. The subgroup trends shown in the current occasional paper complement the last section of Chapter 5 (Trends in Drug Use in Early and Middle Adulthood) of that monograph by presenting the trend data for young adult subgroups in both graphic and tabular form. The results are described and discussed in Chapter 5, but the extensive set of tables and figures is provided here for the reader who wishes to view the figures and the underlying numerical values in tabular form. Three demographic dimensions are differentiated: gender, region of the country, and population density. Gender includes trends for males and females; region describes trends for each of the four major regions defined by the U.S. Census; and population density differentiates trends for five levels of community size. The Table of Contents and List of Figures in this occasional paper contain links to the content and figures. Following each figure is a table giving the numerical values associated with each trend line in that figure. [For the 1988-2019 Monitoring the Future Occasional Paper, see ED608244.]

This occasional paper presents subgroup findings from the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study on levels of, and trends in, the use of a number of substances for nationally representative samples of high school graduates ages 19-30, "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2018. Volume II, College Students & Adults Ages 19-60" (see ED599071). The data have been gathered in a series of follow-up surveys of representative subsamples of high school seniors who were first surveyed in 12th grade as part of the MTF study. The subgroup trends shown in this occasional paper complement the last section of Chapter 5 (Trends in Drug Use in Early and Middle Adulthood) of that monograph by presenting the trend data for young adult subgroups in both graphic and tabular form. The results are described and discussed in Chapter 5, but the extensive set of tables and figures is provided in this occasional paper for the reader who wishes to view the figures and the underlying numerical values. Three demographic dimensions are differentiated: gender, region of the country, and population density. Gender includes trends for males and females; region describes trends for each of the four major regions defined by the U.S. Census; and population density differentiates trends for five levels of community size. The Table of Contents and List of Figures in this occasional paper contain links to the content and figures. Following each figure is a table giving the numerical values associated with each trend line in that figure.

This paper studies the impact of compulsory schooling on violent behaviour and victimization in school using individual-level administrative data matching education and criminal records from Queensland (Australia). Exploiting a legislative increase in the minimum dropout age in 2006, this study defines a series of regression-discontinuity specifications to show that compulsory schooling reduces crime but increases violent behaviour in school. While police records show that property and drugs offences decrease, education records indicate that violence and victimization in school increase. Thus, prior studies that fail to consider in-school behaviour may over-estimate the short-run crime-reducing impact of compulsory education.

This article investigates the causal relationship between women's schooling and fertility by exploiting variation generated by the removal of school fees in Ethiopia. The increase in schooling caused by the reform is identified using both geographic variation in the intensity of its impact and temporal variation generated by the timing of the implementation. The model finds that the removal of school fees led to an increase in schooling for Ethiopian women and that each additional year of schooling led to a reduction in fertility. An investigation of the underlying mechanisms linking schooling and fertility finds that the decline in fertility is associated with an increase in labor market opportunity and a reduction in women's ideal number of children. [This paper is a product of the Knowledge and Strategy Team, Development Economics.]

This article looks at the labour market outcomes of 2015 postsecondary graduates three years after graduation. Specifically, it examines their employment status, job permanency, relatedness of their job or business to their 2015 educational program, the degree to which graduates feel qualified for their job, their employment income and their job satisfaction. This article answers the question: How are graduates of 2015 faring in terms of their integration into the labour market?

This occasional paper presents subgroup findings from the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study on levels of, and trends in, the use of a number of substances for nationally representative samples of high school graduates ages 19-30, "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2018. Volume II, College Students & Adults Ages 19-60" (see ED599071). The data have been gathered in a series of follow-up surveys of representative subsamples of high school seniors who were first surveyed in 12th grade as part of the MTF study. Therefore, the universe being described omits people who did not complete high school--between 8 and 15% of each age group, with the most recent class cohorts closer to the bottom of that range. Surveys of the graduating cohorts of high school seniors started in 1976 and have continued with each graduating class since. Data were first available for the 19-22 age group in 1980 and for the older age groups in subsequent years, as the tables and figures in this occasional paper indicate. The general epidemiological findings from these samples are discussed in "Volume II" of the annual monograph series. The subgroup trends shown in this occasional paper complement the last section of Chapter 5 (Trends in Drug Use in Early and Middle Adulthood) of that monograph by presenting the trend data for young adult subgroups in both graphic and tabular form. The results are described and discussed in Chapter 5, but the extensive set of tables and figures is provided in this paper for the reader who wishes to view the figures and the underlying numerical values. Three demographic dimensions are differentiated: gender, region of the country, and population density. Gender includes trends for males and females; region describes trends for each of the four major regions defined by the U.S. Census; and population density differentiates trends for five levels of community size. The Table of Contents and List of Figures in this occasional paper contain links to the content and figures. Following each figure is a table giving the numerical values associated with each trend line in that figure.

The number of young people who are not in employment, education and training -- NEET, as this group has become widely known as -- is a key indicator on the state of youth labour markets and opportunities for young people more generally. The persistence and, in the years following the global financial crisis, growth of this group of young people is a major concern for policy makers in Europe for both its short term and long term consequences. However, it is a diverse group as people can be NEET for many reasons, and so understanding the importance of these reasons is crucial for targeting policy responses. This paper looks at data on young people between the age of 16 and 29 in the UK, tracks how the incidence or chance of being NEET has changed over the period between 1985 and 2015, and highlights which characteristics are associated with a higher chance of being NEET and how the importance of these drivers has changed over time. We show that the overall NEET rate has fallen considerably since the 1980s, but has remained largely the same since 2000. Over the past thirty years, the reduction in young people leaving school with few or no qualifications, fewer young people having children and improvements in the chances for young women to work alongside childcare responsibilities have all put a downward pressure on NEET rates, although penalties for women with childcare are still large. Since 2000, an increase in the incidence of mental ill health has acted in the opposite way, while a slower rate of improved educational attainment and some scarring from the 2008-9 recession has also contributed to the persistence of NEETs. We argue that the current policy focus on skills and work incentives for reducing the number of NEETs in the UK misses two key obstacles -- mental ill health and child care. Policies to either tackle increasing mental ill health rates or facilitate (where possible and desirable) some form of labour market participation specific to sufferers of mental ill health could be expected to have some large effects on their own. Moreover, the government could also look to reduce childcare costs and facilitate flexible working for those who want to balance care with work. That said, we find no relationship between the availability of part-time work in a region and NEET rates, so the solution here is unlikely to be as simple as creating more jobs -- of any type and quality -- which offer a smaller number of hours.

Reducing the proportion of youth not in employment, education or training (NEET) is one of the targets of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 8. This has become an important indicator that is monitored by many countries and international organizations since youth NEET are prone to long-term economic and social difficulties. Although Canada-centric studies on youth NEET exist, they tend to focus on sociodemographic characteristics and on educational and employment outcomes. This report aims to expand the information on Canadian youth NEET by examining various sociodemographic and psychosocial characteristics. It also aims to explore whether different subgroups of youth NEET experience similar psychosocial characteristics. This study is based on data from three recent Canadian Community Health Survey cycles (2015 to 2017). This study indicated various sociodemographic and psychosocial differences between Canadian youth NEET and non-NEET, and also highlighted the diversity among different youth NEET subgroups. Future research should continue to identify risk and protective factors related to NEET status by distinguishing among the subgroups of this population.

In this report we present results from our study of the effect of SNAP [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] and WIC [Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children] participation during childhood on food insecurity risk in young adulthood. We also examined the effect of parental nutritional knowledge and childhood food involvement on food insecurity in young adulthood. We used data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics Original Childhood Development Supplement. Our balanced panel (n=1,305) was comprised of individuals who were 0-12 years old in 1997, had data on SNAP and income from their year of birth through 2015, food insecurity data in 2015/2017, and had moved out of their parents' home and started their own household prior to 2015. We estimated logistic models using sample, cluster and strata weights to generate nationally representative results. We find a small, but non-statistically significant effect of SNAP and WIC participation during childhood on odds of being food insecure during young adulthood. When examining change in food security from 1999-2015, we find that participation in SNAP during ages 0-5 years (OR 2.36, 95% CI: 0.99, 5.61), and during ages 12-18 years (OR 2.68, 95% CI: 1.09, 6.57) is associated with a higher odds of being more secure in 2015 than in 1999 compared to low income children who were eligible for, but did not participate in SNAP. Participation in both SNAP and WIC during ages 0-5 predicts higher odds (OR: 4.47, 95% CI: 2.04, 9.78) of being more secure in young adulthood than in childhood compared to low income children who were eligible for, but did not participate in SNAP or WIC. Finally, we saw a statistically significant protective effect of high parental nutritional knowledge (in 1999) and child time spent preparing food (during ages 5-12) on food insecurity risk in 2015-2017. SNAP and WIC, as well as parental nutritional knowledge and childhood food involvement appear to have some protective effect on food insecurity in young adulthood. Future research should further investigate the effects of nutrition education, nutrition assistance program participation, and involvement in food preparation on food insecurity over the short- and long-term.

Exposure to stressful life experiences during childhood, such as food insecurity, can have negative consequences for attainment later in life. The developmental timing of stressful events and how they influence outcomes over the life course is a critical area of research. Indeed, a more comprehensive understanding of the latter life consequences of childhood food insecurity could guide policy-makers in designing more effective social policies to reduce the severity of the poor life outcomes. This project uses data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics to estimate the young adult impacts (as late as age 25) of food insecurity experienced in discrete childhood stages -- middle childhood (ages 5-10), early adolescence (ages 11-14), and middle adolescence (ages 15-18). It aims to identify which childhood stage-specific effects of food insecurity are most important to five young adult outcomes in two main areas -- risky sexual behaviors and criminal justice involvement. Results provide consistent evidence that the mean food security scores in middle childhood are associated with the criminal justice involvement outcome. The results are less consistent with the sexual risk taking outcomes. Middle childhood food insecurity is associated with the number of sexual partners in young adulthood, while early adolescent food insecurity is associated with the number of children in young adulthood. Results indicate that male respondents appear to be more sensitive to food insecurity than females.

This occasional paper presents subgroup findings from the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study on levels of, and trends in, the use of a number of substances for nationally representative samples of high school graduates ages 19-30. The data have been gathered in a series of follow-up surveys of representative subsamples of high school seniors who were first surveyed in 12th grade as part of the MTF study. Therefore, the universe being described omits people who did not complete high school--between 8 and 15% of each age group, with the most recent class cohorts closer to the bottom of that range. Surveys of the graduating cohorts of high school seniors started in 1976 and have continued with each graduating class since. Data were first available for the 19-22 age group in 1980 and for the older age groups in subsequent years, as the tables and figures in this occasional paper indicate. Three demographic dimensions are differentiated: gender, region of the country, and population density. Gender includes trends for males and females; region describes trends for each of the four major regions defined by the U.S. Census; and population density differentiates trends for five levels of community size.

Young adults face enormous economic, social and psychological challenges when they transition into adulthood. This transition can be especially overwhelming and daunting for young adults with disabilities. Among the challenges young adults with disabilities are faced with are greater risk of low food security and barriers to healthcare. This study examines how the transition to adulthood may affect food security, health, and access to healthcare for youth with disabilities, and estimates the effects that SNAP has on this group in those turbulent years. The study used five years of data (2011-2015) from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). We combined the public and restricted NHIS data with the state SNAP policy variables. The sample included low-income individuals ages 13-25 (and their families) to reflect the life stage from pre-transition, to transition, and then to post-transition. Analyses were conducted at the Census Research Data Center in Columbia, MO. A difference-in-difference (DID) approach in linear models was applied to compare individuals with and without disabilities regarding changes in food security status and their health-related outcomes in the transition to adulthood. State SNAP policy variables were used as exogenous instruments to estimate the effects of SNAP participation on food security and health/healthcare use for youth and young adults with disabilities in the models of instrumental variables. Below is a summary of the main findings in which youth are referred to as individuals under 18, and young adults are referred to as individuals ages 18 to 25. (1) Compared to those without disabilities, individuals with disabilities have a greater risk of low food security in both childhood and young adulthood; (2) Transition into adulthood results in greater food security for individuals without disabilities but an increased risk of low food security for individuals with disabilities. The increased risk for young adults with disabilities may well put them at very low food security, the most severe category on the food security scale; (3) Food security status is associated with health and access to healthcare for all the four groups, youth and young adults, with or without disabilities. However, the associations between low food security and health-related outcomes do not seem to vary by disability status for young adults, indicating the additional risk of low food security that young adults with disabilities experience does not correlate with their health-related outcomes; (4) Contrary to our expectation, SNAP participation does not seem to have statistically significant effects on food security and health-related outcomes for individuals with disabilities. These impacts, although insignificant, show expected directions (i.e., improving food security and health) that are different from those often found in the OLS estimation that does not address the selection bias; and (5) SNAP participation is a statistically significant predictor of youth's food security status measured by the food security raw score only, but not the other three food security measures. SNAP participation appears to have greater impacts for youth than for young adults. In other words, the protective effects of SNAP decrease for young adults perhaps because they encounter greater barriers accessing SNAP than when they were young. The study's limitations are closely examined with a focus on the constraints that we had in the DID analysis and the IV analysis. We also suggested directions for future research. Since food security likely has a profound impact on the long-term development, economic independence, and self-sufficiency, we discussed a few policy strategies that may help individuals with disabilities in their transition to adulthood. These include special outreach services to improve SNAP accessibility, an embedded alert system that serves to bring awareness of a SNAP participant's upcoming transition to adulthood, incorporation of nutrition assistance in transition planning for youth, and better coordination of multiple public programs.

We conduct an empirical simulation exercise that gauges the plausible impact of increased rates of college attainment on a variety of measures of income inequality and economic insecurity. Using two different methodological approaches--a distributional approach and a causal parameter approach--we find that increased rates of bachelor's and associate degree attainment would meaningfully increase economic security for lower-income individuals, reduce poverty and near-poverty, and shrink gaps between the 90th and lower percentiles of the earnings distribution. However, increases in college attainment would not significantly reduce inequality at the very top of the distribution. [This paper was prepared for the 2020 ASSA session, "The Race between Education and Technology Revisited." For the Policy Brief, see ED603920.]

The purpose of this paper was to conduct a scan of the current state of the evidence regarding what works in helping disconnected young people, defined as the population of young people ages 16 to 24 who are not connected to work or school. The following four main research questions were investigated: (1) What local, state, and federal policies have an impact on disconnected young people? What policies are helping improve services for this population? What policies are barriers to creating effective programs?; (2) What programs have been shown to be effective in serving disconnected young people? What evaluations in process have the potential to contribute to the evidence base?; (3) What is known about the effectiveness of system-level approaches, also called "collective impact approaches?"; and (4) Where are there gaps in services or knowledge? What programs or practices should be targeted for further research or expansion? MDRC conducted a literature review of relevant policies and programs. The literature reviewed included writing on impact, quasi-experimental, and implementation studies. MDRC also conducted reviews of numerous websites to learn about current policy trends and evaluations in process. To supplement what was learned from written materials, MDRC interviewed a number of practitioners in the field, including representatives from foundations, coalitions, and research organizations. The main findings included: (1) Policies affecting disconnected young people span a range of systems, including public schools; adult basic and secondary education; and the juvenile justice, foster care, and mental health systems. As a result services, funding, and research are often uncoordinated and fragmented, though collective impact or system-level approaches are attempting to combat these challenges; (2) Though program impacts may be modest or short-lived, successful programs share some common features. These include: opportunities for paid work and the use of financial incentives; strong links among education, training, and the job market; the use of youth development approaches; comprehensive support services; and support after programs end; (3) Programs share some common implementation challenges, including: outreach and enrollment practices that may limit the populations they serve; difficulties keeping young people engaged in a program long enough to benefit from it; staff turnover; and difficulties addressing young people's barriers to participation, particularly their lack of transportation and child care; (4) The field's understanding of what works in serving disconnected young people could advance significantly in the coming years, as more than a dozen evaluations of programs are currently under way, including evaluations of collective impact approaches; and (5) There are gaps in the existing services available: There are not enough programs for young people who are not motivated to reconnect to education or the job market on their own, nor for young people who have low basic skills, especially those who have aged out of the public school system. The areas where there are gaps in services also tend to be areas where there is little evidence regarding what works. Selected Evaluations of Programs for Disconnected Young People is appended.

This Cedefop study examines the contribution that vocational education and training (VET) can make to reducing early leaving from education and training (ELET). Published in two volumes, this first looks at quantitative data to understand better the extent of early leaving from VET (ELVET). It analyses mechanisms for monitoring early leaving (at national and EU-levels), and examines VET and labour-market-specific factors, as well as those related to the individual and his/her family background, contributing to this phenomenon. It aims to assist national policy-makers and decision-makers at different levels in developing existing monitoring systems to measure ELVET and inform VET policies to tackle ELET. It also aims to assist European stakeholders to refine the EU indicator to capture the important variations in individual situations of early leavers. The second volume reviews VET-related measures to tackle ELET, either by preventing learners dropping out and/or by bringing those who have already left back to education and training. Contains a bibliography and webliography. [ICF consulting services conducted the research for this report. For "Leaving Education Early: Putting Vocational Education and Training Centre Stage. Volume II: Evaluating Policy Impact. Cedefop Research Paper. No 58," see ED573445.]

This Cedefop study focuses on the contribution that vocational education and training (VET) can make to reducing early leaving from education and training (ELET). Published in two volumes, the first is dedicated to understanding better the learning pathways of young students, providing measurements of early leaving in VET, and understanding the role of VET in breaking the vicious cycle of early leaving and unemployment. This second volume reviews VET-related measures to tackle ELET, either by preventing learners dropping out and/or by bringing those who have already left back to education and training. This volume identifies and discusses the key features of successful policies and practices, plus the conditions necessary to evaluate and upscale successful regional and local practices to national strategies. Contains an annex of reviewed evaluations and main results. Includes a bibliography and webliography. [ICF consulting services conducted the research for this report. For "Leaving Education Early: Putting Vocational Education and Training Centre Stage. Volume I: Investigating Causes and Extent. Cedefop Research Paper. No 57," see ED573444.]

The purpose of this paper is to provide a detailed description of the Monitoring the Future research design, including sampling design, data collection procedures, measurement content, and questionnaire format. This study assesses the changing lifestyles, values, and preferences of American youth on a continuing basis. Each year since 1975, at least 13,000 seniors have participated in the annual survey, which is conducted in some 120 to 140 high schools nationwide. Since 1991, the study's annual surveys also have included surveys of similar nationally representative samples of eighth- and tenth- grade students. In addition, subsamples of seniors from previously participating classes receive follow-up questionnaires by mail each year. [For the objectives and theoretical foundation for the Monitoring the Future Study, see "The Objectives and Theoretical Foundation of the Monitoring the Future Study. Monitoring the Future Occasional Paper Series. Paper 84," ED578426.]

Amid growing recognition that strong academic skills alone are not enough for young people to become successful adults, this comprehensive report offers wide-ranging evidence to show what young people need to develop from preschool to young adulthood to succeed in college and career, have healthy relationships, be engaged citizens, and make wise choices. It concludes that rich experiences combining action and reflection help children develop a set of critical skills, attitudes, and behaviors. And it suggests that policies should aim to ensure that all children have consistent, supportive relationships and an abundance of these developmental experiences through activities inside and outside of school. The Wallace Foundation awarded a competitive grant to UChicago CCSR in 2013 to undertake the project, which included a review of relevant literature spanning decades as well as interviews with national experts in research, policy and practice, and young people and the adults who work with them in schools, programs and agencies throughout Chicago. The report offers evidence to show how, where, and when the "key factors" to success develop from early childhood through young adulthood, emphasizing the kinds of experiences and supportive relationships that guide the positive development of these factors. Recognizing that there are no silver bullets to promoting social-emotional learning, the report emphasizes a range of factors that build on one another over time. It also emphasizes factors that are particularly malleable, as well as the age at which each of the key factors comes into prominence, offering adults the most promising window for positive intervention. A key problem the report identifies is that disadvantaged youth often face extra challenges. For example, they often have fewer in-school and out-of-school opportunities for consistent, positive developmental experiences and relationships and face significant opportunity gaps to developing the essential skills to become productive adults. An appendix provides a list of experts who provided input and feedback throughout this project. [This report was written with David W. Johnson, Sarah Dickson, Ashley Cureton Turner, Ashley Mayo, and Kathleen Hayes.]

Holding a summer job is a rite of passage in American adolescence, a first rung towards adulthood and self-sufficiency. However, over the past decade, youth employment during the summer has decreased significantly. Summer youth employment has the potential to benefit high school students' educational outcomes and employment trajectories, especially for low-income youth. Despite the potential importance of youth employment during summer, evidence of the impact of summer jobs on youth outcomes is limited to only a few studies. Our research examines summer youth employment, beginning with academic outcomes, by studying New York City's Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). SYEP provides jobs to youth ages 14-24, and due to high demand for summer jobs, allocates slots through a random lottery system, allowing for causal estimates of program impact. Our study uses student-level data from the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development (the SYEP administrating agency) and New York City Department of Education, encompassing approximately 300,000 student SYEP applicants for the 2005-2009 program years. This paper examines the impact of SYEP on a wider range of academic performance outcomes, including test taking, passing rates and scores. It also attends to variation in these outcomes. Our findings suggest that SYEP has positive impacts on some student academic outcomes, and that these effects are heterogeneous. Future analyses will focus on examining program, student and school characteristics that might explain these variations. The following tables are appended: (1) Lottery randomization results; (2) Attrition in year following application to SYEP, Grade 8-11 and alternative program, 2005-08; and (3) Impact of selection on attrition, by grade.

We evaluate the long-term effects of a "girl-friendly" primary school program in Burkina Faso, using a regression discontinuity design. Ten years later, primary school-age children in villages selected for the program attend school more often and score significantly higher on standardized tests. We also find long-term effects on academic and social outcomes for children exposed earlier in the program. Secondary-school-age youths and young adults (those old enough to have finished secondary school) complete primary and secondary school at higher rates and perform significantly better on standardized tests. Women old enough to have completed secondary school delay both marriage and childbearing.

We examine the effects WWII Lanham Act Nursery Schools (LNS) on high school and young adult educational and labor outcomes of participants in the landmark Project Talent (PT) study. All PT places that received funding for LNS schools and all PT places that did not were identified by examining program records and contemporaneous newspaper accounts. Focusing on students who in 1960 attended high school in the same city or town where they were born, we estimate intent to treat effects of access to LNS preschool on high school academic and social emotional outcomes and on educational attainment and labor outcomes at five and eleven years following high school graduation. Preschool boosts high school academic outcomes for men and (in at least one specification) income 11 years after high school graduation. For women, preschool exposure had a negative effect on some social emotional outcomes in high school. We found no or inconsistent effects for other outcomes. The Lanham experience demonstrates that even with the less sophisticated understanding of child development of the early 1940s, the first universal, government-funded preschool program had positive impacts on boys' outcomes at least through high school. Given today's expanded understanding of child development and focus on the quality of early care and education programming, these findings provide some optimism as communities, states, and the federal government contemplate expanding funding for today's early learning environments.

In this paper, we examine the impact of school shootings on the human health and capital outcomes of middle and high school student survivors as adults in their twenties and early thirties. Our data on school shooting events is from a recent, comprehensive database of school shootings compiled by the Center for Homeland Defense and Security. The analytic dataset contains incidents from 1994-2005 in conjunction with Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System survey data from 2003-2012 on respondents 23 to 32 years of age. We find substantial evidence that, relative to their unexposed peers, school shooting survivors experience declines in health and well-being, engage in more risky behaviors, and have worse education and labor market outcomes. The effects among those exposed in the more recent past, 6-12 years prior to the survey, are consistent with those of the full sample. The significance of effects dissipates among those exposed earlier, 13-18 years prior to the survey.

The Career and Occupational Development (COD) assessment of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) was made up of about 70 percent free response exercises requiring hand scoring. This paper describes the techniques used in developing the "scoring guides" for these exercises and summarizes the results of two empirical studies of the application of these scoring guides. The guides used in the hand scoring were sets of nominal (descriptive) category systems. No attempt was made to arrange the categories along any ordinal continuum according to either quality or content. However, categories were considered to be either acceptable or unacceptable. The readers were given a scoring guide in which each category is given a descriptive title and illustrated by a number of sample responses. (RC) Primary type of information provided by report: Procedures (Scoring).