Does Pollution Drive Achievement? The Effect of Traffic Pollution on Academic Performance

Abstract

Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen:Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden.Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen.Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte.We examine the effect of school traffic pollution on student outcomes by leveraging variation in wind patterns for schools the same distance from major highways. We compare within-student achievement for students transitioning between schools near highways, where one school has had greater levels of pollution because it is downwind of a highway.Students who move from an elementary/middle school that feeds into a "downwind" middle/high school in the same zip code experience decreases in test scores, more behavioral incidents, and more absences, relative to when they transition to an upwind school. Even within zip codes, microclimates can contribute to inequality. JEL Classification:Q53, I24, I14

Environmental Exposures in Singapore Schools: An Ecological Study

“…These findings imply that students from lower socioeconomic status likely attended public schools and had to travel farther to attend a school of higher quality. As demonstrated in previous studies, as children have to travel farther to attend school, they will be exposed to more pollutants and will become more tired compared to those who attend school closer to their homes [ 10 , 27 ]. Studies have shown that traffic-related air pollution can have dire consequences on student health and that schools must not only choose areas of low pollution but must also consider the effects of pollution exposure through transportation and traffic [ 10 , 27 ].…”

“…As PSLE exam scores no longer inform the caliber of school that a student will attend, it can be assumed that the standard of education in schools will normalize and become more equivalent to one another. Quality of education and quality of a student’s thermal environment should not be contingent on the distance traveled to reach school [ 10 , 27 , 28 ].…”

“…The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has stressed that many pediatric health conditions are associated with pollution and heat and that these effects may be difficult to mitigate, especially in low-income countries [ 9 ]. Additionally, studies have shown that pollution exposure occurs not only in the school environment but also during the daily commute between home and school [ 5 , 10 ]. Indoor and outdoor air quality can have a direct effect on child respiratory health [ 5 , 10 ].…”

“…Additionally, studies have shown that pollution exposure occurs not only in the school environment but also during the daily commute between home and school [ 5 , 10 ]. Indoor and outdoor air quality can have a direct effect on child respiratory health [ 5 , 10 ].…”

Reframing the US Attendance Crisis: School Absences Send Powerful Signals about Children Nationally

“…Healthrelated conditions and illnesses in particular can account for a significant proportion of missed school days (Akinbami, Moorman, & Liu, 2011;Gee, 2019;Jackson, Vann, Kotch, Pahel, & Lee, 2011;Torpy, Campbell, & Glass, 2010). Although health complications can also lead to school absences, they often intersect with or are entirely endogenous to community environments that affect family finances, work schedules, and quality of home environment (Diette et al, 2000;Heissel, Persico, & Simon, 2019;Hsu, Qin, Beavers, & Mirabelli, 2016;Mizan, Shendell, & Rhoads, 2011). Parents also influence whether children make it to class (Gee, 2019;Gottfried & Hutt, 2019).…”