Haste Makes No Waste: Peer Effects of a Speed Competition on Math Score

This study investigates the peer effects of a speed competition on educational outcomes in self-learning at the right level program for primary school students in Bangladesh. Specifically, we examine the peer effects of speed of problem-solving (time) on math scores (score) using students’ daily progress record over eight months. The unique setting of the program allows to address the identification challenges such as the direction of causality and the reflection problem. The results show a significant peer effect of classmates’ speed on improving one’s own time. Furthermore, we find that the faster the classmates of similar abilities, the higher one’s own math scores. This suggests that the speed competition among students with similar abilities leads to improving their learning quality without negatively affecting others. These findings will contribute to shaping an effective learning environment by incorporating positive peer pressure on learning quality.

Keywords: education, self-learning, developing countries, speed, peer effect

JEL Classification: I20, O12

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Kawarazaki, Hikaru and Kawarazaki, Hikaru and Mahmud, Minhaj and Sawada, Yasuyuki and Seki, Mai, Haste Makes No Waste: Peer Effects of a Speed Competition on Math Score (May 11, 2020). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3580507 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3580507