Mosaddek Hossain
Ph.D Candidate
Job Market Candidate, 2024-25
Economics
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References: Darren Lubotsky, Ben Ost, Javaeria Qureshi, John Tauras
Job Market Paper: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, Does It Matter How Old Your Peers Are? Evidence on Heterogeneous Effects of Male and Female Peer Age in Elementary School
Abstract: Existing literature demonstrates that peer age plays a crucial role in shaping student outcomes in elementary school. I build on this literature by highlighting that differences in developmental rates between boys and girls likely lead to varying theoretical effects of peer age based on gender. Using administrative data on public school students in North Carolina, I exploit cross-cohort, within-school variation in third-grade peer age to examine these effects. I find that both male and female peer age positively influence student test scores, but male peer age has an impact that is twice as large as female peer age. Further analysis reveals substantial differences in these effects based on students’ gender, age, and economic disadvantage. These findings underscore the importance of separately considering male and female peer age when assigning students to classrooms, providing practical strategies to enhance learning outcomes in elementary schools.