Deck 11: Education

Question 1

Someone states that educated workers are no better at teaching coworkers valuable job skills than are uneducated workers.According to this person,which of the following is NOT a legitimate government intervention in the education market?

A) credit market failure
B) productivity spillovers
C) redistribution
D) to produce a less criminally inclined public

Answer 1

productivity spillovers

Question 2

Which of the following suggests that education generates a positive externality?

A) Better-educated people tend to earn higher wages.
B) Better-educated people make their coworkers more productive.
C) Better-educated people live longer than less educated people.
D) Better-educated people are less likely to vote and participate in a democracy.

Answer 2

Better-educated people make their coworkers more productive.

Question 3

If increased spending leads to higher quality in education,government provision of a fixed amount of education will cause:

A) a reduction in quality in all cases.
B) an increase in quality in all cases.
C) no change in quality in any case.
D) an indeterminate change in quality.

Answer 3

an indeterminate change in quality.

Question 4

In the United States,approximately _____ of K-12 students attend public schools rather than privately funded institutions.

A) 10%
B) 25%
C) 50%
D) 90%

Question 5

If the government were to give every student a voucher to redeem at any school,it would be intervening through _________.If the government were to mandate no tuition cost more than $6,000/year without intervening in any other way,it would be intervening through _________.

A) public provision; private provision
B) the price mechanism; the price mechanism
C) the quantity mechanism; the price mechanism
D) the price mechanism; the quantity mechanism

Question 6

If the government were to subsidize the purchase of education without intervening in any other way,it would be intervening through the _________ mechanism.If the government were to mandate that everyone attend school through age 16 without intervening in any other way,it would be intervening through the __________ mechanism.

A) public provision; private provision
B) price mechanism; quantity mechanism
C) quantity mechanism; price mechanism
D) price mechanism; price mechanism

Question 7

When a talented student from a poor family is unable to receive a loan because she has no collateral,this _________ can be addressed by __________.

A) government failure; the privatization of education
B) government failure; the abolition of the federal Department of Education
C) credit market failure; the privatization of education
D) credit market failure; government intervention

Question 8

A pure educational voucher system will necessarily lead to which of the following,assuming that higher levels of spending lead to higher levels of educational quality?

A) Each family with school-aged children receives a fixed amount that can be spent at any public or private school.
B) Each family with school-aged children would reduce private spending on education.
C) There is crowding-out of private spending on education.
D) Only low-income families receive assistance with the cost of private education.

Question 9

Which is TRUE about the international comparison of per pupil spending and educational attainment?

A) State and local governments spend only 5% of their budgets on education.
B) The United States spends much more per student and achieves outcomes that are noticeably higher than those of other nations.
C) U.S.eighth graders are less proficient in math and science than students in much less wealthy countries.
D) In the United States,the federal government spends 30% of its budget on education.

Question 10

The argument that a voucher system will ________ the efficiency of schools is ___________ if there is a lot of Tiebout sorting on the basis of education.

A) increase; not affected
B) increase; strengthened
C) increase; weakened
D) decrease; not affected

Question 11

Government is involved in education because society benefits from:

A) a large workforce and lower wages.
B) fewer public sector jobs.
C) credit market failures.
D) more income mobility.

Question 12

According to economist Sam Peltzman,by providing a fixed level of public education,government intervention:

A) may lower educational attainment by inducing families to choose higher-quality private schools over lower-quality public schools.
B) may lower educational attainment by inducing families to choose lower-quality public schools over higher-quality private schools.
C) will not affect educational attainment because families will choose the highest-quality school they can afford.
D) will definitely improve educational attainment because families will choose the highest-quality school they can afford.

Question 13

Someone states that since parents always have their children's best interests at heart,government should not intervene in the education market.According to this person,which of the following is NOT a legitimate reason for government intervention in the education market?

A) credit market failure
B) productivity spillovers
C) to produce a less criminally inclined public
D) the failure of family utility maximization

Question 14

A politician states that areas in which the population is poorly educated have more break-ins than other areas and that,consequently,the government should intervene in the education market.Leaving aside whether the politician's conclusion about the cause of the difference is correct,which justification for government intervention in the education market is the politician using?

A) credit market failure
B) productivity spillovers
C) redistribution
D) to produce a less criminally inclined public

Question 15

A politician claims that government should intervene in the education market to "even the playing field" for rich and poor families.Which justification for government intervention in the education market is the politician using?

A) credit market failure
B) productivity spillovers
C) redistribution
D) to produce a less criminally inclined public

Question 16

If the government were to directly operate schools,it would be intervening through _________.If the government were to require that everyone attend school through age 16 without intervening in any other way,it would be intervening through__________.

A) public provision; private provision
B) the price mechanism; the quantity mechanism
C) the quantity mechanism; the price mechanism
D) public provision; the quantity mechanism

Question 17

If the government justifies intervention in education by asserting it wants to enable income mobility,which justification for intervening is it using?

A) credit market failure
B) productivity spillovers
C) redistribution
D) to produce a less criminally inclined public

Question 18

Education is a good example of a:

A) pure public good.
B) pure private good.
C) good that creates external benefits.
D) good that creates external costs.

Question 19

You hear someone say that government should intervene in the education market because uneducated parents don't fully understand the value of education for their children.Leaving aside whether the politician's conclusion about the cause of the difference is correct,which justification for intervention is the politician using?

A) credit market failure
B) productivity spillovers
C) to produce a less criminally inclined public
D) the failure of family utility maximization

Question 20

The Common Core is:

A) a long-accepted group of learning objectives that govern K-12 curriculum design.
B) a controversial set of national standards outlining what students ought to know.
C) an attempt to give local school districts more control over educational goals.
D) considered too easy to be helpful in improving educational outcomes.

Question 21

A market with a natural cost advantage to having only one provider of a service is a:

A) black market.
B) free market.
C) natural monopoly.
D) natural monopsony.

Question 22

Someone argues that under any voucher system,schools will try to avoid taking the students who are the most difficult to teach.This criticism is an example of the concern about:

A) segregation.
B) provision of education as a natural monopoly.
C) the high costs of special education.
D) vouchers as an inefficient and inequitable use of public resources.

Question 23

Which of the following is NOT a problem of school vouchers?

A) consumer sovereignty
B) excessive school specialization
C) school segregation
D) inefficient and inequitable use of public resources

Question 24

Loans made to students by the federal Department of Education are referred to as:

A) direct student loans.
B) deferred student loans.
C) subsidized student loans.
D) guaranteed student loans.

Question 25

With respect to empirical evidence related to education,which is NOT true?

A) Higher levels of education are associated with a reduced likelihood of participation in the political process.
B) Higher levels of education are associated with a lower likelihood of criminal activity.
C) Higher levels of education are associated with improved health.
D) Higher levels of education among workers are associated with higher rates of productivity of their coworkers.

Question 26

Suppose a state institutes a voucher program.Schools that have too many applicants use a lottery to randomly determine who can attend.The best approach to determining the effect of a voucher on student achievement is to compare the achievement of students ___________ to the achievement(s)of __________.

A) who won the lottery; the average student in the public school
B) in private schools; students in public schools.
C) who won the lottery; students who lost the lottery
D) in schools with increased enrollment; students in schools with decreased enrollment

Question 27

Someone argues that vouchers would lead to the brightest students leaving the public school system.This criticism expresses a concern about:

A) excessive school specialization.
B) segregation.
C) provision of education as a natural monopoly.
D) vouchers as an inefficient and inequitable use of public resources.

Question 28

Large cuts in public education financing over the past decade have led to:

A) a shrinking debt burden on students.
B) a growing debt burden on students.
C) no change in the debt burden on students.
D) a large reduction in the amount borrowed by students to pay for college.

Question 29

Competitive pressures faced by schools are likely to be _________ when there are ___________ other communities nearby than when there are not.

A) higher; many
B) lower; many
C) unchanged; many
D) higher; few

Question 30

Which of the following is NOT true about Pell Grants?

A) Pell Grants are provided to low-income families to pay for higher education.
B) Pell Grant eligibility is entirely merit-based.
C) Te Pell Grant amount depends on the applicant's characteristics.
D) The Pell Grant program intends to provide more opportunities to low-income families.

Question 31

The arguments of voucher supporters are based on a __________ model of the education market.

A) monopolistically competitive
B) perfectly competitive
C) natural monopoly
D) oligopoly

Question 32

If education serves to separate high-ability workers from low-ability workers,it _____ play a valuable social role,and the educational institutions that do this best should be _______.

A) does not; taxed
B) does not; subsidized
C) does; taxed
D) does; subsidized

Question 33

Which is an unintended consequence of school accountability programs?

A) Some teachers "teach to the test" and do not focus enough on learning.
B) Teachers increase their focus on subjects,not on the test,to add balance.
C) Schools are careful to ensure that all students take standardized exams.
D) Teacher promotions are not based on student performance.

Question 34

Recent work by Mars and Turner (2015)suggests that Pell Grants:

A) largely crowd out borrowing for college,creating very little net change in education levels.
B) largely crowd out borrowing for college,creating a significant net change in education.
C) have no significant crowding out effect on borrowing for college,so the net change in education levels is negligible.
D) have no significant crowding out effect on borrowing for college,so the net change in education levels is substantial.

Question 35

Loans made from private banks for which the government promises repayment in the event of default are referred to as:

A) direct student loans.
B) deferred student loans.
C) subsidized student loans.
D) guaranteed student loans.

Question 36

In the United States,in 2015,the average student with a disability costs about:

A) $6,000 a year to educate,more than twice the cost of educating a student without a disability.
B) $6,000 a year to educate,about half the cost of educating a student without a disability.
C) $12,700 a year to educate,more than twice the cost of educating a student without a disability.
D) $12,700 a year to educate,about half the cost of educating a student without a disability.

Question 37

The positive correlation between education and earnings is consistent with education as:

A) an escape for those who don't want to work.
B) a screening device that may not affect skills.
C) a waste of taxpayer money.
D) a way of preventing income inequality.

Question 38

Someone argues that vouchers will lead students of different races to sort into "white" and "black" schools.This type of criticism expresses a concern about:

A) excessive school specialization.
B) segregation.
C) provision of education as a natural monopoly.
D) vouchers as an inefficient and inequitable use of public resources.

Question 39

Someone argues that an advantage of vouchers would be to allow high school students to learn to weld and operate a mill instead of learning about Beowulf.This person is not concerned about:

A) excessive school specialization.
B) segregation.
C) provision of education as a natural monopoly.
D) vouchers as an inefficient and inequitable use of public resources.

Question 40

Small,independent public schools not subject to many of the regulations imposed on traditional public schools,including restrictions on teacher qualifications,are called:

A) magnet schools.
B) charter schools.
C) parochial schools.
D) private schools.

Question 41

Employers often list a 4-year college degree as a requirement for those applying for certain jobs.Is this practice consistent with the screening explanation for education,the human capital story,both,or neither? Explain.

Question 42

President Barack Obama appointed Arne Duncan to be the Secretary of Education in 2009.Discuss Secretary Duncan's methods to address education woes during his tenure as CEO of the Chicago public school system as well as his efforts during his term as Secretary of Education.Summarize the views of his supporters and opponents.

Question 43

Jaeger and Page (1996)show that if two individuals both have 4 years of college but one doesn't graduate while the other does,the one with a bachelor's degree will earn 25% more,suggesting that the degree signals higher productivity levels for graduates relative to non-graduates.
(a)Assume that students who attend college for four years acquire identical amounts of human capital,regardless of whether they graduate.Why might people who graduate in 4 years be more productive workers than those who attend college for 4 years but do not graduate?
(b)Suggest reasons why the student with the degree might have acquired different human capital in college than the student who attended college for 4 years but did not graduate.

Question 44

One unintended consequence of giving public schools incentives for their students to do well on standardized tests is that it may lead to "teaching to the test" at the expense of teaching subjects that are not tested.If the standardized exams given by the state test reading comprehension and mathematics,would you expect these teaching distortions to be the same at the elementary and high school level? Explain.

Question 45

Several states mandate that school district boundaries follow county lines,while other states allow several school districts to locate in the same county.Assume that county size is approximately the same in both of these groups of states.Suppose both groups are considering implementing school vouchers,and proponents in both groups argue that increased competition will lead to greater efficiency.Which group of states is more likely to achieve greater efficiency gains? Hint: Think about Tiebout sorting.

Question 46

Studies that identify the effect of a voucher program on the achievement of students who use vouchers typically do so by comparing the achievement of students who used the voucher to switch to a different school to the achievement of otherwise similar students who wanted to but could not use the voucher to switch to a different school.Will such studies capture the effects of increased competition on the inefficient schools in the voucher-eligible area? Explain.