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We study a targeted, multi-year accelerated math curriculum, offered in all middle schools of a large urban school district, that enables students to finish Algebra I and Geometry before high school. Entry to the program is based on 5th-grade scores, with a cutoff at the 80th percentile, enabling a regression discontinuity analysis for marginally eligible students. Following students for 13 years after entry, we show that the accelerated curriculum has significant positive effects on the probabilities that marginally eligible girls enter selective colleges, complete a college degree within 6 years, and major in STEM or business/economics. In contrast, we find zero effects on the degree completion or major choices of marginally eligible boys. In ongoing work, we aim to address concerns that the presence of an accelerated track hurts lower-scoring students – and also to shed light on the potential benefits for infra-marginal students – by comparing students with similar math scores in our district and those in nearby districts without an accelerated program. 

Laura Giuliano is Professor of Economics at the University of California–Santa Cruz. Her research focuses on topics in labor and personnel economics and the economics of education and includes studies of tracking and gifted education. Before joining UC Santa Cruz, Giuliano held faculty positions at the University of Miami and UC Merced and visiting positions at UC Berkeley and the University of Virginia. In 2015–16, she served as senior economist for President Obama’s Council of Economic Advisers. Giuliano received her PhD in Economics from UC Berkeley.