Evaluating the impact of a classroom training program on noncognitive skills through a randomized controlled trial

Last registered on September 19, 2025
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Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Evaluating the impact of a classroom training program on noncognitive skills through a randomized controlled trial
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0016405
Initial registration date
July 17, 2025

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
July 17, 2025, 8:12 AM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Last updated
September 19, 2025, 10:34 AM EDT

Last updated is the most recent time when changes to the trial's registration were published.

Locations

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Primary Investigator

Name
Shuaizhang Feng
Affiliation
Institute for Economic and Social Research, Jinan University
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Other Primary Investigator(s)

PI Name
Yujie Han
PI Affiliation
PI Name
James Heckman
PI Affiliation
University of Chicago
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Additional Trial Information

Status
In development
Start date
2025-06-22
End date
2026-06-19
Keywords
Education
Additional Keywords
noncognitive skills, child development
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Prior work
This trial does not extend or rely on any prior RCTs.
Abstract
Noncognitive skills are important determinants of long-term individual outcomes, yet how to improve them is still unclear. We plan to conduct a randomized controlled trial (RCT) among primary school students in a county in southwestern China to evaluate the effects of a structured noncognitive training program. The intervention will provide students with a 12-week course delivered by external lecturers, designed to strengthen a variety of noncognitive skills. We will examine whether the intervention affects students' cognitive and noncognitive development, classroom behavior, and related educational outcomes.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Feng, Shuaizhang, Yujie Han and James Heckman. 2025. "Evaluating the impact of a classroom training program on noncognitive skills through a randomized controlled trial." AEA RCT Registry. September 19. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.16405-1.1
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
The intervention is conducted in collaboration with seven local primary schools in a county in Southwestern China. These schools have agreed to participate. The intervention targets students in all six grades in primary schools. Students in the treatment group participating in the intervention will receive a 12-lesson classroom curriculum that focuses on developing their non-cognitive (social-emotional) skills. The curriculum content includes animated videos, real-life case discussions, interactive classroom activities, and home workbooks. Each lesson emphasizes a key non-cognitive skill. The teaching materials were developed by researchers in conjunction with external education experts and primary school teachers. The courses will be taught weekly by trained external instructors (rather than regular school teachers) to ensure consistency of content and minimize disruption to regular classroom teaching. In addition to students' classroom learning, the project includes monthly gatherings with guardians to provide guidance and help for students learning at home.
Intervention Start Date
2025-09-15
Intervention End Date
2025-12-20

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Test scores, Big Five personality traits, economic and social preferences, behaviors in schools, parental investments and interactions with students
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The study adopts a clustered randomized controlled trial (RCT) design, with randomization conducted at the class level. A total of 108 classes in grades 1-6 across 7 schools will participate, and approximately half (54 classes) will be randomly assigned to the treatment group, with the remaining classes assigned to the control group.

Baseline data was collected in June 2025, prior to the start of the intervention. The 12-week intervention for treatment group will run from September 23 to December 20, 2025. All training sessions will be delivered offline in classrooms by trained lecturers unaffiliated with the schools.

The curriculum will be consistently implemented across all treatment classes, using standardized teaching materials and formats. Endline measurements will be collected in June 2026, after the next semester’s midterm examinations.

Primary outcome variables include standardized assessments of students' cognitive and noncognitive skills, behavioral indicators in the classroom, and levels of parental engagement. This design enables us to rigorously evaluate the short- to medium-term effects of a scalable, classroom-based noncognitive training program in a Chinese context.
Experimental Design Details
Not available
Randomization Method
Randomization done on a computer.
Randomization Unit
Class
Was the treatment clustered?
Yes

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
108 classes
Sample size: planned number of observations
4,000 students
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
roughly 54 classes in the treatment group and 54 classes in the control group.
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
Institutional Review Board of Social Sciences and Humanities, Jinan University
IRB Approval Date
2024-03-20
IRB Approval Number
IRB No.A2403004-035
Analysis Plan