Andy de Barros
@andydebarros.bsky.social
📤 977
📥 562
📝 50
https://de-barros.com/
program evaluation, education policy, development economics
reposted by
Andy de Barros
NBER
3 days ago
Lasting change requires more than cash—interventions adding information meetings and home visits produce real, sustained gains for mothers and children, from Richard Akresh, Damien de Walque, Harounan Kazianga, and Abigail Stocker
www.nber.org/papers/w34578
0
13
4
reposted by
Andy de Barros
NBER
6 days ago
Evaluating a soft-skills course implemented in Ugandan and Kenyan primary schools that replaced academic review time with lessons on goal-setting and related skills as students prepared for primary school-leaving exams, from Dam, Gray-Lobe, Kremer, de Laat, and Morsink
www.nber.org/papers/w34562
0
4
2
reposted by
Andy de Barros
John Holbein
9 days ago
Woah. Argentina's 1990s preschool expansion program appears to have been a smashing success. The program increased high school completion by a whole 11.9 percentage points. The authors estimate that for every $1 spent, the preschool expansion generated about $11 in benefits.
3
137
57
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Bia
9 days ago
My friend Xu has a WP out! He and prof Zhengwei use CEPS data to show private tutoring exacerbates inequality via the "rat race": intense competition degrades class atmosphere and demotivates non-tutored peers, causing them to give up Link here
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
0
2
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Lee Crawfurd
9 days ago
Pre-school in Africa works. "on average, these programmes are successful in improving children's cognitive outcomes by 0.10 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01) [and] children's socioemotional development by 0.09 standard deviations (p-value < 0.01)."
academic.oup.com/jae/advance-...
1
3
4
reposted by
Andy de Barros
AEFP
13 days ago
The EdDev Community Group will meet tomorrow at 11 AM ET. Alejandro Ganimian will present work in progress. Join the EdDev Community Group today
aefpweb.org/communit...
0
5
5
Cool new
@cesifo.org
paper, documenting "teaching to the top":
www.ifo.de/en/cesifo/pu...
13 days ago
0
1
0
reposted by
Andy de Barros
AEA Journals
14 days ago
Forthcoming in AEJ: Applied Economics: "From Access to Achievement: The Primary School-Age Impacts of an At-Scale Preschool Construction Program in Highly Deprived Communities" by Bassi, Besbas, Dinarte-Diaz, Ravindran, and Reynoso.
www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=...
loading . . .
From Access to Achievement: The Primary School-Age Impacts of an At-Scale Preschool Construction Program in Highly Deprived Communities
(Forthcoming Article) - We evaluate a large-scale public preschool construction program in deprived rural communities in Mozambique using a randomized control trial. The program increased preschool en...
https://www.aeaweb.org/articles?id=10.1257/app.20240364&from=f
0
6
2
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Jessica Leight
16 days ago
Today's cool young researcher
#econtwitter
#econsky
is
@palaashbhargava
postdoc
@UChicago
who works on topics related to development, labor + social networks
2
12
1
New guidance on EdTech in developing countries, by
@singhabhi.bsky.social
,
@lnavarrosola.bsky.social
, and Philip Oreopoulos This looks good!
voxdev.org/voxdevlit/ed...
loading . . .
Education Technology
Policy Priorities for EdTech in LMICsAvoid hardware-first approaches. These have consistently failed and are expensive.Prioritise interventions with strong evidence of cost-effective impact:Personalis...
https://voxdev.org/voxdevlit/education-technology
20 days ago
0
6
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Abhijeet Singh
23 days ago
I have a new VoxDev Lit launching this week on education technology👇 This area has lots of froth, but also some very promising evidence on tech use (on teaching, assessments, information) across K-12. Pulling this together was fun (with Phil Oreopoulos and
@lnavarrosola.bsky.social
).
add a skeleton here at some point
0
24
6
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Johannes Haushofer
27 days ago
Exciting news on
@malengo.org
, the NGO that helps East African students move to Europe for education: Our research team has given us a glimpse of their early findings! Here is the full writeup, joint with
@richardnerland.bsky.social
:
forum.effectivealtruism.org/posts/CpZYHk...
Thread follows!
1
67
33
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Center for Global Development
30 days ago
The World Bank plans to “operationally align” its research arm. But the changes could undermine its ability to deliver rigorous, independent analysis free from client or internal pressure. More from
@charlesjkenny.bsky.social
and
@eeshani.bsky.social
⬇️
https://go.cgdev.org/43vNSgK
loading . . .
The World Bank Group Reorganization: A Retreat from Research Quality?
A recent PowerPoint presentation presents the outline for the institutional structure of “The WBG Knowledge Bank.” But a knowledge bank owes it to its stakeholders impartial and transparent considerat...
https://go.cgdev.org/43vNSgK
0
7
5
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Harry Anthony Patrinos
29 days ago
Can Tutoring—and Technology—Finally Solve Bloom’s Two Sigma Problem?
www.gettingsmart.com/2025/11/25/c...
loading . . .
Can Tutoring—and Technology—Finally Solve Bloom’s Two Sigma Problem?
Tutoring and technology are revolutionizing education, addressing Bloom's two sigma problem with scalable, cost-effective, high-impact solutions.
https://www.gettingsmart.com/2025/11/25/can-tutoring-and-technology-finally-solve-blooms-two-sigma-problem/
0
1
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Jerry Montonen
about 1 month ago
🚀 I’m excited to share that I’m on the
#EconSky
job market this year! In my
#EconJMP
, I study how teachers in Finnish upper secondary schools impact students’ socio-emotional skills – and the labor market returns of these effects! (🧵, 1/N)
1
40
15
reposted by
Andy de Barros
AEFP
about 1 month ago
The EdDev Community Group will meet tomorrow at 11 AM ET. Vatsal Khandelwal & Nneka Esther Osadolor will present work in progress. Join the EdDev Community Group today
aefpweb.org/communit...
0
1
3
PacDev 2026 will take place on March 14---submit your paper now! Deadline: Dec 14
#pacdev2026
#econsky
cega.submittable.com/submit/34150...
loading . . .
Center for Effective Global Action - Pacific Conference For Development Economics (PacDev) 2026 - UC Davis - Call for Papers
Deadline to submit papers is Sunday, December 14, 2025 at 11:59 PM PST. PacDev 2026 will take place on Saturday, March 14, 2026. It will be hosted by the University of California, Davis. When submit...
https://cega.submittable.com/submit/341504/pacific-conference-for-development-economics-pacdev-2026-uc-davis-call-for
about 1 month ago
0
3
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Danielle Graves Williamson
about 1 month ago
👋 I'm Danielle, and I'm on the
#econjobmarket
this year! Let's start with a student describing her segregated school: "The school felt temporary. Built like a warehouse with aluminum siding . . . I had a slipshod education" The twist? The student is white, and her school is private. A JMP 🧵 -->
5
158
104
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Paul Goldsmith-Pinkham
about 1 month ago
Grading difference affect gender gap in STEM? - Need to dig into this but need to understand why there would be gender differences in "preference" for grades
#linkoftheday
public.econ.duke.edu/~psarcidi/aa...
1
11
3
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Hans Henrik Sievertsen
about 2 months ago
This week I read the forthcoming paper in AEJ: EP by Bowden, Rodriguez, Weingarten studying how a more lenient grading policy affected student behavior and outcomes As the table shows - pre: min effort for D -> 69 points - post: min effort for D -> 60 points
#econsky
1/N
1
4
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Ryan Briggs
2 months ago
I think this is kind of neat and I don't think anyone else has noticed it (I've looked and I can't find anyone who has)
osf.io/preprints/so...
Maybe I should back off "justification" language, but it's at least a remarkable coincidence. I still think someone else *must* have noticed it...
5
70
21
reposted by
Andy de Barros
David Evans
2 months ago
This paper is adapted from our more traditional research paper:
academic.oup.com/wbro/article...
.
0
4
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
The Quarterly Journal of Economics
2 months ago
Recently accepted by
#QJE
, “Digital Distractions with Peer Influence: The Impact of Mobile App Usage on Academic and Labor Market Outcomes,” by Barwick, Chen, Fu, and Li:
doi.org/10.1093/qje/...
loading . . .
Digital Distractions with Peer Influence: The Impact of Mobile App Usage on Academic and Labor Market Outcomes*
Abstract. Concerns about excessive mobile phone use among youth are mounting. We present estimates of both behavioral and contextual peer effects, along wi
https://doi.org/10.1093/qje/qjaf048
0
64
39
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Alex Coppock
2 months ago
👀 this new meta-analysis on edutainment by
@bardiarahmani.bsky.social
, Montano,
@dylanwgroves.bsky.social
, and Green
doi.org/10.1017/bpp....
377 ests in 77 exps: edutainment moves attitudes, norms, beliefs 📊 Effects persist ⏳ Many reasonable theories about effect heterogeneity are not supported 😇
1
19
6
Confusing title. I really expected a paper on Indian parenting...
add a skeleton here at some point
2 months ago
0
3
0
reposted by
Andy de Barros
David Evans
3 months ago
In Pakistan, providing a technological tool to teachers but framing its use as optional delivered bigger impacts than either an analog tool or a mandatory tool.
tahir-andrabi.sites.pomona.edu/wp-content/u...
0
6
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Rafiuddin (Rafi) Najam
3 months ago
Exciting news. We are hiring a tenure-track Assistant Professor in Public Policy. Focus areas: environmental policy, international development, or poverty. Link:
unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/307...
Submission Deadline: November 3, 2025. Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions.
loading . . .
Assistant Professor
This position is located in the Department of Public Policy within the College of Arts and Sciences. This tenure-track position includes 40% teaching, 40% research, and 20% service to the department. ...
https://unc.peopleadmin.com/postings/307190
0
7
8
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Mauricio Romero
3 months ago
Early Childhood Education is central to India’s NEP and global edu goals. Our(
@petterberg.bsky.social
@singhabhi.bsky.social
) new paper at EJ (
@resmedia.bsky.social
ky.social
,
bit.ly/4gOtoVV
), shows private ECE outperform public options, explaining 60% of the SES gap. In primary, NO private premium.
1
10
3
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Oliver Hanney
3 months ago
🆕 Where to find development economics resources I've updated my list of all the various sources of newsletters, articles, podcasts & videos relevant to development economics that I've come across in my three years at
@voxdev.bsky.social
:
voxdev.org/topic/where-...
loading . . .
Where to find development economics resources: Newsletters, articles, podcasts & videos
Where can you find articles, podcasts, and videos about research and topics in development economics? This blog is your one-stop shop for accessible resources related to development economics.
https://voxdev.org/topic/where-find-development-economics-resources-newsletters-articles-podcasts-videos
0
7
7
reposted by
Andy de Barros
David McKenzie
3 months ago
This week's links include some positive developments in development, how to negotiate your econ job, why an SEZ was not very successful, econ meets other disciplines, and more...
blogs.worldbank.org/en/impacteva...
loading . . .
Weekly links September 19: positive developments, negotiating a job, counting people, SEZ problems, and more…
https://blogs.worldbank.org/en/impactevaluations/weekly-links-september-19--positive-developments--negotiating-a-
0
10
3
www.cgdev.org/event/call-p...
3 months ago
0
1
0
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Harry Anthony Patrinos
3 months ago
A new GLO Discussion Paper shows that online tutoring during wartime improves student learning outcomes, reduced stress, and is highly cost-effective. It is possible to develop human capital amid conflict.
#GLabor
www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10...
0
2
1
New by Ila Fazzio, Rukmini Banerji,
@alexeble.bsky.social
, and others, edited by Nishith Prakash: Support To Rural India’s Public Education System (STRIPES2) and impact on numeracy and literacy scores: A cluster randomized trial in rural villages of Madhya Pradesh, India
doi.org/10.1371/jour...
3 months ago
0
2
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Abhijeet Singh
4 months ago
Many interventions “work” in small trials but fail at scale Also, EdTech often promises much, but delivers little In a new paper (
bit.ly/3JKLgVn
)
@karthik-econ.bsky.social
& I show how personalized adaptive learning (PAL) software can sharply improve learning outcomes at scale🧵1/16
2
64
23
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Lee Crawfurd
4 months ago
4 findings from our experimenting with policymakers paper, finally published in World Development last month (a mere 3.5 years after the CGD working paper version) ...
loading . . .
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X25002256?dgcid=rss_sd_all
1
8
3
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Colin Green
4 months ago
Conference Announcement: 16th International Workshop on Applied Economics of Education (IWAEE -
www.iwaee.org
) will be held on the 15th and 16th of June, 2026. More information, including call for papers, to follow
0
20
14
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Fred Oswald
4 months ago
as editor, I'm actually signing the petition myself :) == Adopt Registered Reports at Psychological Methods - Sign the Petition!
chng.it/wszLWM4KPX
== e.g., look forward to exploring options for preregistration for the journal
@apajournals.bsky.social
@akmontoya.bsky.social
loading . . .
Sign the Petition
Adopt Registered Reports at Psychological Methods
https://chng.it/wszLWM4KPX
1
32
11
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Michael Clemens
4 months ago
What great news that
@iza.org
is moving to
@liser.lu
! The world's top network of labor economists emerged from tumult with a new and wonderful home. A visionary choice by both institutions, with large ripple effects for economists worldwide. Thank you
@iza.org
and
@liser.lu
1
26
6
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Jules Gazeaud
4 months ago
How to get honest answers to sensitive survey questions? Our WP introduces the ballot-bag, a new method that is both precise and unbiased, improving on existing approaches such as list experiments. Joint work with Bruno Crépon and Ahmed Elsayed.
#econsky
www.iza.org/publications...
0
10
4
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Todd Pugatch
4 months ago
Thanks for the great response so far! The
@aefpweb.bsky.social
EdDev group still has an open presentation slot for Sept. 12, 11am eastern! Contact me if you're interested.
#edusky
#econsky
add a skeleton here at some point
0
4
2
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Lee Crawfurd
4 months ago
Much better data viz here than for our similar analysis of school books from 3 countries!
journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...
add a skeleton here at some point
0
2
2
reposted by
Andy de Barros
VoxDev
9 months ago
🆕 The challenges of improving parenting practices at scale Today on VoxDev, Irma Arteaga (University of Missouri), Andreas de Barros (UC Irvine) & Alejandro J. Ganimian (NYU) present evidence from an automated phone call programme in India:
voxdev.org/topic/educat...
loading . . .
The challenges of improving parenting practices at scale
Home visitation and group meeting parenting programmes have improved child development in low- and middle-income countries, but are too expensive to be delivered at large scale. Evidence from India sh...
https://voxdev.org/topic/education/challenges-improving-parenting-practices-scale
1
7
4
reposted by
Andy de Barros
David Evans
4 months ago
I love that so much attention is going to making sure children master literacy & numeracy in the early grades! But we can't forget the kids who need later remediation.
www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1...
This study substantively boosts literacy & numeracy among secondary school students.
0
2
1
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Sandy Black
4 months ago
Society of Labor Economists (SoLE) Annual Conference will be May 1-2, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. Submission portal is now open! Deadline for submissions is October 31--don't forget to submit! It will be a great conference! (organized by me and
@jrothst.bsky.social
)
mailchi.mp/sole-jole/so...
loading . . .
SOLE 2026 Submissions Open
https://mailchi.mp/sole-jole/sole-2023-submissions-open-18237139?e=9c2e023451
0
70
47
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Alexander Berger
4 months ago
Exciting NBER study (and NYT coverage) finding that $1,000 unconditional cash transfers in Kenya reduced under-5 deaths by 45%. GiveWell already took this evidence into account in their positive update on GiveDirectly last fall (doesn't make a huge quantitative difference).
1
25
7
Oxford University CSAE Conference 2026: Economic Development in Africa Deadline: September 14 Call for papers:
www.csae.ox.ac.uk/sitefiles/cs...
4 months ago
0
1
0
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Todd Pugatch
4 months ago
School feeding program in Rwanda yields 11x return on investment
academic.oup.com/jae/article-...
loading . . .
School Feeding and Cognitive Performance in Rwanda
Abstract. Using unique administrative data on test scores from a high stake national exam for primary school students in Rwanda, we evaluate the impact of
https://academic.oup.com/jae/article-abstract/34/4/494/8045668
2
24
13
TIL "Originally considered by Allied scientists in World War II, [multi-armed bandits] proved so intractable that (...) the problem was proposed to be dropped over Germany so that German scientists could also waste their time on it."
doi.org/10.1111/j.25...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-a...
5 months ago
0
5
4
reposted by
Andy de Barros
Alexandra de Gendre
5 months ago
Hey
#econSky
I've written a short blog post on some hidden advantages I see in Pre-Analysis Plans for team work, whether you do experimental research or not. Check it out here:
adegendre.github.io/posts/2025-0...
loading . . .
Why make a Pre-Analysis Plan – Alexandra de Gendre
Some thoughts on pre-analysis plans
https://adegendre.github.io/posts/2025-08-06-why-do-a-pre-analysis-plan/index.html
0
14
5
reposted by
Andy de Barros
John A. List
5 months ago
Our special issue seeks to foster novel theoretical and empirical papers that treat scaling as an object of study in its own right—exploring its methodological foundations, economic incentives, institutional challenges, and pathways to impact. Please spread the word!
ideas.repec.org/p/feb/artefa...
loading . . .
Call for Papers: Special Issue on the Science of Scaling
We are excited to announce a special issue dedicated to the “Science of Scaling†in the Journal of Political Economy: Microeconomics. This special issue aims to advance rigorous, interdisciplinary
https://ideas.repec.org/p/feb/artefa/00823.html
0
8
4
Load more
feeds!
log in