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How school report grades affect pupils’ life decision
Federičová, Miroslava
Every year around 14 % of pupils in the fifth grade of primary school apply for places at eightyear gymnasium. More girls than boys apply for places by 53 percent, and more girls than boys are accepted by 53%. The gender imbalance in applications and places awarded is even greater at the later points of transition to gymnasium (academic track secondary schools) for its sixyear and four-year formats. This study only looks at the transition to eight-year format. Girls are on average awarded better grades on their school reports than boys who achieve identical test results. This is apparently because teachers award grades based not only on cognitive skills and knowledge but also on the pupils’ socio-emotional abilities, in which boys tend to be worse off. The criteria for admission to eight-year gymnasium are based primarily on the results of admissions and in part on the applicant’s average grade on their most recent half-yearly school report. Pupils’ decisions about whether to apply to gymnasium are primarily determined by their school report grades, in particular whether they have achieved the top grade “1”, rather than by their expectations about their admissions test results. Our analysis reveals that gender imbalance among applicants to eight-year gymnasium persists even when we compare groups of boys and girls with identical chances of admission. The imbalance is most marked in the group of pupils with borderline chances of admission. A much larger proportion of boys than of girls in this group achieved grades lower than “1” on their reports in one or both of the key subjects – mathematics and Czech language. Pupils’ and parents’ inaccurate assumptions about pupils’ cognitive skills based on their report grades can distort pupils’ further educational ambitions, lead them to make inappropriate decisions about further schooling and thus substantially influence their educational pathways, careers and life stories.\nReport grades provide particularly imperfect information about pupils’ abilities due to their extremely limited comparability: grades are awarded differently at different schools and by different teachers (whose subjective views they reflect), and the weight given to pupils’ socioemotional skills within the grade is unclear.
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The impacts of introducing the waiting period in 2008 for sick leave
Pertold, Filip
The government of the Czech Republic has approved a plan to cancel the so-called waiting period – the policy of not paying any sick pay during the first three days of sick leave from work. This study summarises the most important findings of Filip Pertold’s research paper about the short term impacts of the sick pay reform that introduced the waiting period, i.e. reduced the amount of sick pay for the first three days of sick leave taken in 2008 to zero.
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The impact of higher wages of politicians on municipal elections
Palguta, Ján ; Pertold, Filip
This study investigates whether raising local representatives’ pay has the potential to motivate\ncitizens to stand for election and thus improve the selection of elected councillors. We look\nat the influence pay has on the number of political subjects that enter the election (i.e. on the political competition), and at the selection of representatives in terms of their education, previous profession, gender and age. To identify the causal effects of salaries, we use the existence of sharp increases in the salaries paid to mayors based on municipality size.\n
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The consequences of the postponed abolishment of super gross wages
Kalíšková, Klára ; Šoltés, Michal
There have already been a number of attempts to abolish the concept of super gross wages\nused for personal income tax purposes since 2008. The most recent proposal to abolish super\ngross wages and introduce a progressive tax system was put forward in February 2018 as part\nof a tax package suggested by the Czech Ministry of Finance and subsequently appeared in the\ncurrent government’s policy statement. By August 2018 this intention had disappeared from\nthe government’s legislative package, but we can expect this amendment to be brought back\nto the table in the future.
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Obesity in the Czech Republic: an international comparison using data from the SHARE project
Pertold, Filip ; Šatava, Jiří
The World Health Organization considers obesity to be one of the greatest challenges for\npublic health in the 21st century. On the basis of data from SHARE, we show that Czechs aged\n50-70 years have a high rate of obesity (BMI > 29,99) in comparison with other countries.\nIn 2015 around 35 % of older men in the Czech Republic suffered from obesity, that is almost\ntwice as high as the rate in Italy or Switzerland and more than 50 % higher than the rate\nin Western European countries (c. 23 %).
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Senior guide: how not to lose income while taking early retirement
Šatava, Jiří
This study quantifies the financial consequences of six basic options for a number of typical individuals who leave their jobs “by agreement” two years before reaching statutory retirement age. It also outlines the non-financial conditions and consequences of these options. The ideal compromise between the financial and non-financial consequences of each option is left to the preferences of particular individuals.
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Czech teachers’ intellectual skills in international and generational comparison
Münich, Daniel ; Krajčová, Jana
This study reveals the levels achieved in and differences between general intellectual skills achieved by national populations as a whole and those achieved by teachers. Specifically it presents (a) an international comparison of older and younger adult populations and (b) a comparison of younger and older generations of teachers. Our comparison does not limit itself to presenting mean test score values, but also reveals the extent of heterogeneity in skills among the relevant populations of each country. We also offer a detailed overview of the issue of selection into the teaching profession, from both international and intergenerational perspectives.
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How Egalitarian are we? Earnings, income and household conditions in Czechia in comparison with Europe
Večerník, Jiří ; Mysíková, Martina
The study brings a comprehensive view of population’s earnings, household incomes, redistribution flows, household budgets and wealth, both in terms of development in the Czech Republic and compared to European countries. It also deals with perceived economic inequality and middle-class identity. It uses a wide range of statistical and sociological data, partly from European and world databases, and partly from own calculations based on individual data of comparative surveys. Data are presented mainly in charts showing the position of the Czech Republic on European ladder. The results question the general belief about extraordinary equality in our country and specific Czech egalitarianism. The Czech society is no longer equalized in earnings, or in the situation of households. It does not even appear to be exceptionally egalitarian in different attitudes.
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Growth in individuals’ disposable incomes between 2005 and 2015: whose income improved?
Janský, Petr ; Šatava, Jiří
Individuals' disposable incomes increased on average by 22 % between 2005 and 2015, and therefore more rapidly than real wages did (18 %). Therefore, in 2015 half of the Czech Republic’s population had a monthly disposable income of more than 15 300 Kč and the mean monthly disposable income stood at 17 100 Kč. The relative differences in individuals' disposable incomes moderately decreased between 2005 and 2015, despite widely held beliefs to the contrary. From an international perspective, the Czech Republic thus remains one of the countries with the lowest inequality in disposable incomes.
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