Heat and learning inequality: evidence from Italy

January 1, 2026Open Access

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Key Points

The research aims to assess how cumulative heat exposure affects standardized test scores among Italian fifth-grade students.
Analyzed data from over 3.4 million fifth-grade students from 2012 to 2019 in Italy.
Examined the relationship between high temperatures and mathematics scores using within-municipality variation.
Considered the effects of heat on different socioeconomic backgrounds and achievement distributions.
Each additional day above 26.7°C decreases mathematics scores by 0.0044 standard deviations.
Cumulative heat exposure leads to a performance penalty of 0.064 standard deviations, impacting students similar to a 25% parental education gap.
Extreme heat disproportionately affects vulnerable students, revealing a significant regulatory gap in cooling provisions.

Study estimates the heat's influence on learning for students in Italy, suggesting urgent policy needs.

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Negrisolo et al. (2026) studied this question.

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