The major aims of this paper are to: present the background of the mathematics education problem in the Stamford Public School (SPS) district which is common is most U.S cities; explain the need for change in mathematics education; describe the process to systemically transform both the curriculum and instruction of mathematics thereby ensuring that each and every students is prepared for the 21st century, for higher education, and for success in a global society; and provide ways to measure these changes. The K-12 mathematics education reform model presented can be replicated in other cities and for other academic areas.

This thesis explores the entire cycle of education, from initial access to schooling, over degree completion, to returns to education. Despite recent gains in increasing access, an tens of millions of children worldwide are still out of school. Abolishing school fees has increased enrollment rates in several countries where enrollments were low and fees were high. However, such policies may be less effective, or even have negative consequences, when supply-side responses are weak. The first part of the thesis evaluates the impacts of a tuition waiver program in Haiti, which provided public financing to nonpublic schools conditional on not charging tuition. The chapter concludes that school's participation in the program results in more students enrolled, more staff, and slightly higher student-teacher ratios. The program also reduces grade repetition and the share of overage students. While the increase in students does not directly equate to a reduction in the number of children out of school, it does demonstrate strong demand from families for the program and a correspondingly strong supply response from the nonpublic sector.Pertaining degree completion, it is well established that natural disasters can have a negative effect on human capital accumulation. However, a comparison of the differential impacts of distinct disaster classes is missing. Using census data and information from DesInventar and EMDAT, two large disaster databases, the second part of the thesis assesses how geological disasters and climatic shocks affect the upper secondary degree attainment of adolescents. The chapter focuses on Mexico, given its diverse disaster landscape and lack of obligatory upper secondary education over the observed time period. While all disaster types are found to impede attainment, climatic disasters that are not infrastructure-destructive (e.g. droughts) have the strongest negative effect, decreasing educational expansion by over 40%. The effects seem largely driven by demand-side changes such as increases in school dropouts and fertility, especially for young women. The results may also be influenced by deteriorated parental labor market outcomes. Supply-side effects appear to be solely driven by infrastructure-destructive climatic shocks (e.g. floods). These findings thus call for differential public measures according to specific disaster types and an enhanced attention to climatic events given their potentially stronger impact on younger generations.It is also widely appreciated that natural disasters can have negative impacts on local labor market outcomes. However, the study of differential types of negative capital shocks, the underlying labor market mechanisms, and the context of the poorest countries have been neglected. Following testable predictions of economic theory, the third part of the thesis exploits the exogenous variation of destruction of human and physical capital caused by the 2010 Haiti earthquake to disentangle the differential impact on local individual monetary returns to education. Employing individual-level survey data from before and after the earthquake the chapter finds that the returns decreased on average by 37%, especially in equipment-capital intensive industry. Higher educated individuals adjust into low-paying self-employment or agriculture. The returns are particularly shock-sensitive for urban residents, migrants, males, and people over age 25. / Doctorat en Sciences économiques et de gestion / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

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Submitted by Noeme Timbo (noeme.timbo@metodista.br) on 2016-09-14T18:52:33Z No. of bitstreams: 1 IGORMARQUES.pdf: 1484987 bytes, checksum: 222e9ad06f9f0aead873e9543fe463b9 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-09-14T18:52:33Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 IGORMARQUES.pdf: 1484987 bytes, checksum: 222e9ad06f9f0aead873e9543fe463b9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-08-27 / Against the backdrop of the denominational status of network Adventist education present in a remarkable way in the school space and the intense religious diversity students, this research analyzes the relationship of possible tensions between the denominational school status and religious diversity present. It takes into account the process of modernity causing significant change in education, in religion and in the form of the two institutes relate to each other. It took into account the socio-economic and religious profile of the students and how is the reception of religious education in Adventist school space, including students who declare themselves Adventists. The area chosen for this research was the Adventist schools located in the ABCD Paulista context, which offer high school. These school units are located in the cities of Diadema, Santo Andre and Sao Caetano do Sul, cities located in the same micro region, but with different socioeconomic realities. / Tendo como pano de fundo a confessionalidade da rede adventista de educação presente de maneira marcante no espaço escolar e a intensa diversidade religiosa discente, esta pesquisa analisa a relação de possíveis tensões entre a confessionalidade escolar e a diversidade religiosa presente neste espaço. Leva em consideração o processo de modernidade causadora de importantes transformações na educação, na religião e na forma dos dois institutos se relacionarem. Levou-se em consideração o perfil socioeconômico e religioso dos alunos e possíveis tensões na recepção do religioso no espaço escolar adventista por parte dos discentes, inclusive por aqueles que se declaram adventistas. O espaço escolhido para esta pesquisa foi o de colégios adventistas localizadas no contexto do ABCD Paulista, que ofertam o Ensino Médio. Estas unidades escolares estão situadas nas cidades de Diadema, Santo André e São Caetano do Sul, cidades localizadas na mesma microrregião, mas com distintas realidades socioeconômicas.