The Effect of Teacher's Aides in the Classroom: Evidence from a Randomized Trial

65 Pages Posted: 5 Jul 2015 Last revised: 4 Nov 2018

See all articles by Simon Calmar Andersen

Simon Calmar Andersen

Department of Political Science and TrygFondens Centre for Child Research

Louise Beuchert

Aarhus University - Department of Economics and Business Economics

Helena Skyt Nielsen

Aarhus University - Department of Economics and Business Economics; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Mette Kjærgaard Thomsen

University of Southern Denmark

Date Written: August 9, 2018

Abstract

Teacher’s aides are used worldwide, in various school systems, although, there is no strong evidence of their impact on student outcomes. We use a randomized trial to challenge this state of evidence. We randomly allocate 105 schools to two types of treatment – aides with or without a teaching degree – compared to a control group. Both types of aides have positive impacts on test scores and the effects are persistent over time for disadvantaged students. Exploratory analyses of mechanisms suggest that a teacher’s aide is not just a class-size reduction, but especially impactful when sharing instructional responsibility for the classroom.

Keywords: School Resources; Academic Achievement; Teacher Quality; Student–Teacher Ratio; Co-teaching

JEL Classification: I21, H52

Suggested Citation

Andersen, Simon Calmar and Beuchert, Louise and Nielsen, Helena Skyt and Thomsen, Mette Kjærgaard, The Effect of Teacher's Aides in the Classroom: Evidence from a Randomized Trial (August 9, 2018). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2626677 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2626677

Simon Calmar Andersen

Department of Political Science and TrygFondens Centre for Child Research ( email )

Bartholins alle 7
Aarhus, 8000
Denmark

Louise Beuchert

Aarhus University - Department of Economics and Business Economics ( email )

Fuglesangs Allé 4
Aarhus V, 8210
Denmark

Helena Skyt Nielsen (Contact Author)

Aarhus University - Department of Economics and Business Economics ( email )

Fuglesangs Alle 4
Aarhus, 8210
Denmark

HOME PAGE: http://person.au.dk/hnielsen@econ.au.dk

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Mette Kjærgaard Thomsen

University of Southern Denmark ( email )

Campusvej 55
DK-5230 Odense, 5000
Denmark

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