Rauschenfels, DianeGao, Nan2012-09-062017-04-142012-09-062017-04-1420122012https://hdl.handle.net/11299/187511Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the requirements for The Master of Education Degree in the College of Education and Human Service Professions, University of Minnesota Duluth, 2012Committee names: Diane Rauschenfels. This item has been modified from the original to redact the signatures present.Research showed that US education had fallen behind in global competition. To enhance American competitiveness, this study explored two ways to improve education in the US through a cross-country study of education systems in 40 countries. Specifically, this study focused on two important determinants of students’ academic performance: class size and teacher quality. This was the first study that used the latest Program for International Student Assessment data to examine the relationship between teacher pay and students’ academic performance in a cross-country context. A rigorous empirical analysis showed that while teacher pay had positive, statistically significant and large effects on students’ academic performance, class size had no significant effects. Based on this evidence, this study recommended that US government should spend its limited financial resources raising teacher pay. Such a policy would improve the teacher quality and students’ academic performance in the US, which would in turn enhance American competitiveness.enStudent academic performanceTeacher payClass sizeMaster of EducationDepartment of EducationCollege of Education and Human Service ProfessionsUniversity of Minnesota DuluthPlan Cs (coursework-based master's degrees)Education -- United States -- 21st century.Teachers -- Salaries, etc. -- United States.Class size.Program for International Student Assessment (PISA)Scholarly Text or Essay