Research

Working Papers

Dee, T. and S. Wilson. (2025). The West Texas Measles Outbreak and Student Absences. (EdWorkingPaper: 25-1358). Retrieved from Annenberg Institute at Brown University: https://doi.org/10.26300/050d-c145

• Media Coverage: Stanford GSE; Stanford Hoover Institute; Associated Press.

In Progress

Wilson, S. (2025). The Effect of Universal Public Pre-K on Public School Enrollment: Evidence from Washington, D.C.

• Abstract: Little is known about whether universal pre-K (UPK) expansions affect public school system enrollment at scale. This study uses 25 years of population-level data from Washington, D.C. (1999–2023) to estimate the impact of UPK on public K–5 enrollment. D.C.’s UPK increased public kindergarten enrollment by 20% relative to a synthetic control of comparable school systems, with effects growing over time. The expansion attracted more families into the public system, increasing kindergarten participation among eligible children by 10 percentage points at implementation. These findings demonstrate that large-scale early childhood investments can alter participation in public education systems—relevant as districts nationwide face post-pandemic enrollment declines and rising competition from school choice alternatives.
• Conference presentations: Association of Public Policy and Management (2025); Association for Education Finance and Policy (scheduled, 2026).
• Internal talks: Stanford Advanced Topics in Quantitative Policy Analysis workshop; Stanford Public Economics II workshop.

Reardon, S., Richardson, S. & Wilson, S. (2025). Recent Trends in Educational Achievement Gender Gaps

• Abstract: Girls’ test scores, particularly in math, fell more than boys’ scores during the pandemic, a pattern evident in NAEP data, in state assessment data, and in international assessments. We investigate the patterns of these declines using 15 years’ of test score data from 7000 U.S. school districts.
• Invited talks: Havard’s PIER Public Seminar (presenter: sean reardon)
• Media Coverage: Havard Gazette

Yang, M., Wilson, S., Bromley, P., & Reardon, S. (2025). The Programme for International Student Assessment and the Dynamics of Education Reform Across 155 Countries, 1990-2018

• Abstract: PISA is often assumed to spur education reform, particularly in lower-performing countries. Germany’s “PISA shock” and subsequent reforms after surprisingly poor performance on the 2000 assessment is a classic example. Yet several other countries with similarly lackluster results do not pursue significant reforms. Using data from 155 countries between 1990 and 2018, we provide the first large-scale quantitative analysis of how PISA’s introduction relates to K–12 policy activity.
• Internal talks: Stanford’s Comparative Sociology Workshop (with Marcia Yang)

Richardson, S., Wilson, S., & Reardon, S. (2025). Geographic Variation in US Early Childhood Opportunities and Skills at School Entry**

• Abstract: We build a novel multi-state dataset of population-level kindergarten readiness assessment data and leverage these data to describe local variation and trends in early skills. We document substantial variation in readiness across school districts and strong associations between average readiness and community characteristics (particularly socioeconomic status). We also track changes over the past decade, highlighting pandemic-related declines in early skill and the uneven distribution of pandemic impacts across communities.