Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/192677 
Year of Publication: 
2012
Series/Report no.: 
Discussion Papers No. 695
Publisher: 
Statistics Norway, Research Department, Oslo
Abstract: 
Theory and evidence points towards particularly positive effects of high-quality child care for disadvantaged children. At the same time, disadvantaged families often sort out of existing programs. To counter differences in learning outcomes between children from different socioeconomic backgrounds, European governments are pushing for universal child care. However, empirical evidence on the effects of universal programs is scarce. We provide evidence on the long-run effect on schooling of mandating kindergarten at age 5--6. Our identifying variation comes from a reform that lowered school starting-age from 7 to 6 in Norway in 1997. Our precise DD estimates reveal hardly any effect, both overall, across subsamples, and over the grading distribution. A battery of specification checks supports our empirical strategy.
Subjects: 
kindergarten
early childhood intervention
distributional effects
difference-in-differences
child care
child development
JEL: 
J13
H40
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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