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...ses, classes within schools, schools within regions and school types, etc.). It is necessary to include this highly multilevel data structure into the empirical analysis to obtain unbiased estimates (=-=Raudenbush and Bryk, 2002-=-). This can be done by the use of so called ‘hierarchical’ or ‘mixed’ model. This implies that the intercept - and in some models also the slopes - is allowed to randomly vary between groups. To estim...

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...oach as it is less cumbersome to use with large datasets. A large methodological literature has focused on the issue how to represent smooth functions and to choose the smoothness of these functions (=-=Wood, 2006-=-). The popular backfitting approach of Hastie and Tibshirani (1990) has as advantage that multiple smooth terms can be included. The largest disadvantage is that the model selection (= selection of nu...

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...nments, decentralization may have some additional negative implications, like increased levels of uncoordinated rent-seeking and corruption as government structures become more complex and devoluted (=-=Fan et al., 2009-=-), increased coordination costs and slower institutional reform. The most important negative consequence of increased autonomy may lie in a potential principle-agent problem (see Wößmann et al. (2007)...

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...ce is available). (Moller et al., 2007) 4 In the Flemish Community, these are ‘eindtermen’ 3come bureaucratic rigidity and in this way impact student performance positively (Bottani and Favre, 2001; =-=Chubb and Moe, 1990-=-). Entrusting the provision of education to local agents may also lead to more efficient provision because local agents will be closer and more responsive to student needs and preferences since studen...

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...tric, 4autonomy is therefore expected to enhance educational efficiency. Central examinations are a widely used mechanism to keep the information asymmetries between government and schools in check (=-=Wößmann et al., 2007-=-), but other mechanisms can be used to attain this goal. In Flanders, as in the rest of Belgium, there are no central examinations, but inspection teams investigate on a regular basis whether the curr...

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...hool he/she wants (if place is available). (Moller et al., 2007) 4 In the Flemish Community, these are ‘eindtermen’ 3come bureaucratic rigidity and in this way impact student performance positively (=-=Bottani and Favre, 2001-=-; Chubb and Moe, 1990). Entrusting the provision of education to local agents may also lead to more efficient provision because local agents will be closer and more responsive to student needs and pre...

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...on the Flemish Community (hence Flanders) because it is characterized by the needed within-country variation in school institutions and is considered to have the most effective accountability system (=-=Hirtt, 2007-=-). In Flanders, secondary education starts at age 12 and ends at age 18. Freedom of education and free parental school choice are enshrined in Belgium’s Constitution of 1831. 3 The government subsidiz...