Previous research has found evidence of academic benefits to longer school years. This paper investigates one of the many potential costs of increased school year length, documenting a dramatic decrease in youth suicide in months when school is not in session. A detailed analysis does not find that other potential explanations such as economic…

The adoption of state accountability testing in the 1990s coincided with the movement of some school start dates from September into August. Using data from Wisconsin, this paper connects these phenomena, showing that some low-scoring districts advanced their school start dates to allow their students more time to prepare for exams. I use a 2001…

Computed and compared the accumulation rate of math-time capital through eighth grade in a sample of countries including Japan and the United States. The 1982 IEA exam administered to 13-year olds shows a U.S. score substantially below Japan (the highest math-time country). The United States could lengthen the school year by three weeks and…