Tracking and Its Long-Term Effects on Educational Achievements and Earnings of High School Students in the 1990s

The study highlights the long-term effect of tracking and sorting mechanisms in high school programs and estimates the likelihood of acquiring an academic degree and attaining high-earning employment. According to its findings, there is a close connection between a student’s socioeconomic background and the sorting into tracks. The tracking in high school accounts for almost 30% of the explained variance of earnings in adulthood and it is the second most important factor in explaining disparities in earnings, after gender. Although the basic academic track increased the chances of attaining a Bagrut (matriculation) certificate, the chances of its graduates acquiring an academic degree and finding a high-earning job are low, and essentially, the “tracking effect” persists even today.