|
 Academic Year: |
2014/5 |
| Owning Department/School: |
Department of Economics |
| Credits: |
6 |
| Level: |
Honours (FHEQ level 6) |
| Period: |
Semester 1 |
| Assessment Summary: |
CW 20%, EX 80% |
| Assessment Detail: |
|
| Supplementary Assessment: |
Reassessment exam (where allowed by programme regulations) |
| Requisites: |
You must take ES20069 either before or whilst taking this unit. |
| Description: |
Aims: * The aim of the course is to familiarize students with topics in economics of education and to develop students' ability to apply economics and quantitative (econometric) research methods to the analysis of educational issues in order to: Critically appraise research in the economics of education; * Evaluate specific educational policies; * Prepare students for own research in this area. Learning Outcomes: By the end of the course, the students should: * Understand different theoretically-motivated empirics and data-driven theories in the field of economics of education; * Be able to develop and apply economic models to the analysis of education markets, in particular the demand for education (the rate of return to education) and its interaction with the supply of education (education production functions); * Have sufficient knowledge to empirically investigate different research questions in this area; * Be able to develop valid research designs for the evaluation of policy interventions through a sound understanding of modelling, the problems of recovering estimates of causal effects from data generated via social experiments, natural experiments and from non-experimental settings and the role of qualitative data in understanding processes underlying causal effects; * Know the main sources of data sets used for research in economics of education and how to access such secondary data; * Be able to conduct valid statistical analysis of models using specified data and software packages (Stata). Skills: Intellectual skills * Comprehension, analysis, logical reasoning, argument, synthesis and the evaluation of viewpoints in relation to education policy from an economics perspective; * Understanding and applying the research skills of evaluating evidence in relation to the testing of hypotheses about association and causality between variables; * Clarity and accuracy in oral and written communication; * Developing both socially and more independently the skills of academic study and enquiry. Professional skills * Understanding and critiquing a range of methods of economic appraisal and evaluation applied to education; * Making informed judgments regarding education policy and policy formulation; * ICT skills in obtaining and evaluating information from the internet and in using software to manipulate, interpret and present quantitative data. Content: This unit gives an overview of some important topics in the field of labour economics in general and economics of education in particular, with a strong emphasis on theoretically-motivated empirics or data-driven theory. The selected topics are at the edge of current research focus in economics of education. The preliminary content summary is as follows: 1. Stylised Facts: Education and the Labour Market 2. Key features of the UK education system in a comparative context 3. Human capital theory 4. Signaling theory 5. Estimating the returns to education 6. Increased returns to education 7. Education resources (selection, class size and peer effects, teacher effectiveness) 8. Inequality and inter-generational mobility 9. Early education and intervention policies 10. School competition, school choice and school performance 11. Social returns to education (c rime, health and good citizenship) 12. What can education policy do? Economic evaluation of education initiatives. |
| Programme availability: |
ES30082 is Optional on the following programmes:Department of Economics
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