PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Rangel, Marcos A.
AU  - Shi, Ying
TI  - First Impressions Matter
AID  - 10.3368/jhr.1121-12003R2
DP  - 2023 Nov 07
TA  - Journal of Human Resources
PG  - 1121-12003R2
4099  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2023/11/01/jhr.1121-12003R2.short
4100  - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2023/11/01/jhr.1121-12003R2.full
AB  - We study the empirical relevance of first impressions in the context of education. We find that teachers who begin their careers in classrooms with large White-Black incoming score differentials carry negative views into evaluations of future cohorts of Black students relative to their White classmates. our evidence is based on novel data on blind-scored evaluations and non-blind public school teacher assessments of fourth and fifth graders in North carolina. Teachers’ perceptions are particularly sensitive to early classrooms with relatively low-performing Black students, but not to those with relatively high-performing Black students. Since teacher expectations can shape grading patterns and sorting into academic tracks as well as students’ own beliefs and behaviors, these findings suggest an important link between specific teachers’ novice experiences and the persistence of racial gaps in educational attainment and achievement.