Topic: Improving Equity in Education through Youth Mentoring: An Evaluation of a Randomized Intervention in Colombia

Presenter: Diego Aycinena

Session Details: One-on-one mentoring has become a popular intervention to improve outcomes for disadvantaged adolescents in the US and Europe. It is largely unknown how effective such mentoring programs might be in developing countries with higher levels of inequality and segregation. In this study, we design and test a mentoring program for high-school students from low socioeconomic neighborhoods in Bogotá, Colombia. During their final high-school year they receive one-on-one support from university students, who volunteer to serve as their mentors. To evaluate the program, we use an over-subscription approach and randomly assign students who express interest in participating into a control and a treatment group. Our main outcome variable is performance in the national high-school exit exam (SABER 11). In addition, we assess the program’s impact on non-cognitive skills, aspirations, psychological well-being, and how informed they are about funding opportunities (such as, scholarships), and explore which factors contribute to program take-up and to successful mentoring relationships.

This session will be a seminar and participants are not required to read a paper beforehand.

For more information, reach out to pdri-devlab@sas.upenn.edu