James Heckman Quotes

I remember that, one day, I was visiting one training center in the 1990s that was teaching people how to fix Volkswagen engines from the 1960s, which were no longer sold. So you were training people on a skill that had zero value. The reason is that they hadn't received any new equipment in 20 years.

We can change who we are. We can improve ourselves in various ways, and we can give ourselves possibilities.

Chicago is an exciting place which renews itself. The workshop system encourages close reading and frank discussions of papers and ideas.

Religion gives you a sense of certainty. It makes you feel that you have the right answers to really big questions and that you've grasped the truth.

Early intervention programs enrich adverse family environments. The largest effects of the early intervention programs are on noncognitive traits. Now, what do I mean by that? I mean perseverance, motivation, self-esteem, and hard work.

I had always had a deep interest in social science, history. So even when I was in high school, I was debating, and in college debating, and interested in contemporary events.

The best way to improve the American workforce in the 21st century is to invest in early childhood education, to ensure that even the most disadvantaged children have the opportunity to succeed along side their more advantaged peers

The scientific study of labor economics provided the opportunity for me to unite theory with evidence my lifetime intellectual passion.

My family life is a deep source of satisfaction.

Self-control, openness, the ability to engage with others, to plan and to persist - these are the attributes that get people in the door and on the job, and lead to productive lives.

The traditional story of economists has been to say education explains what the returns are to school. I say, 'Okay, that's fine, but what explains the education? How much is just a matter of my giving you a poor kid versus a rich kid?'

Schooling after the second grade plays only a minor role in creating or reducing gaps.

The cognitive skills prized by the American educational establishment and measured by achievement tests are only part of what is required for success in life. Character skills are equally important determinants of wages, education, health and many other significant aspects of flourishing lives.

Early investment in the lives of disadvantaged children will help reduce inequality, in both the short and the long run.

It is imperative to change the way we look at education. We should invest in the foundation of school readiness from birth to age 5.

Schools should look behind classroom doors and determine the factors that contribute to the kinds of interactions between teachers and students that promote student achievement.

There's no question that we have great value on the sanctity of the family, and there are a lot of competing visions about exactly how we teach a set of values and we teach skills to our children, especially in the early years when they're really forming their personalities, their personas, really.