Abstract
This thesis is a collection of six empirical papers using advanced quantitative methods on various secondary datasets. All the papers focus on the theme of education and engage with questions of policy relevance. Paper I explores the link between decentralisation/autonomy in school management and student achievement across all the countries that participated in PISA (2015). Paper II explores and discusses the same phenomenon in the contexts of Indian school education system using data from Young Lives study. Paper III examines the role of headteacher autonomy in decision making for mitigating the negative effects brought forth by school closures due to COVID-19. The analysis is conducted on a dataset that is constructed by linking the latest Covid survey, by Young Lives study, to the data collected from their previous surveys. It further explores how autonomy plays out in shaping the confidence and coping strategies of school leaders, while dealing with the pandemic, across different school types and at different levels of autonomy for each school type. Paper IV highlights the link between teachers’ pedagogical autonomy and student performance in computer and information literacy against the backdrop of The Buona Scuola reforms in Italy. It uses ICILS (2018) data to focus on the role of different kinds of teachers’ professional development in moderating the relationship between pedagogical autonomy and digital skills.Paper V uses PISA (2018) data to explore trends in the relationship between child labour, gender and educational achievement across countries in Latin America. It evaluates if the association between child labour (both household and non-household labour) and achievement levels are moderated by (influenced or contributes to) gender (inequality). Paper VI employs causal tools (quasi experimental techniques: instrumental variable approach and regression discontinuity design) on British Election Survey (BES) data to analyse the effect of an additional year of education and obtaining a degree on voting participation and preferences in the UK.
The thesis uses these research papers as an impetus to argue for a further push towards empirical analysis to validate/construct social reality over theoretical understanding; and to drive empiricism not by focusing on data/experience/observation but on advancements in methods.
| Date of Award | 28 Jun 2023 |
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| Original language | English |
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| Supervisor | Andres Sandoval Hernandez (Supervisor), Matt Dickson (Supervisor) & Robin Shields (Supervisor) |