The EconCS Group holds an Economics & Computer Science research seminar each semester. Fall '23 meetings are at 1:30 - 2:30 PM on Fridays in SEC 1.413. Seminar Coordinators are Shirley Zhang and Tao Lin. SEC 1.413 is on ground level at the NW corner of SEC, which is open to the public. The seminar is in-person only. Speaker: Juan Perdomo (Harvard CRCS postdoc)
Time & Location: Friday, Sep 22, 1:30 pm, SEC 1.413
Title: The Value of Individual Risk Prediction in Wisconsin Public Schools
Abstract:
Early warning systems are a class of risk prediction tools that have recently become part of the de facto approach towards improving high school graduation rates in the United States. These systems aim to help schools efficiently target resources to students by predicting which individuals are least likely to graduate, and hence need the most help.
In this talk, I’ll present the results of a collaboration with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction in which we conducted the largest-scale longitudinal study of an early warning system to date. Using a decade’s worth of data from all public schools in the state, we find that while its predictions have been highly accurate, its impact on graduation outcomes is somewhat mixed. We draw upon these insights to reimagine how targeting systems should be designed in the first place and propose an improved alternative.