【摘要】 高校扩招后大学毕业生的能力下降了吗?对这一问题的解答成为中国高等教育扩张政策的争论焦点。基于2014年和2016年的CFPS数据，本文利用数学计算能力和算术推理能力来识别教育的人才培育功能，利用识字能力和记忆能力来识别教育的信号筛选功能，系统比较了扩招前后大学毕业生在认知能力上的差异。基于队列—双重差分方法的估计结果表明：首先，相对于高校扩招之前，扩招后大学毕业生的数学计算能力和算术推理能力显著提升，但其识字能力和记忆能力没有显著改变。其次，扩招后大学毕业生认知能力的提升不因城乡、性别、扩招幅度与本专科不同而存在显著差异。最后，机制分析表明，大学期间的学业竞争和培育质量对扩招后大学毕业生认知能力的提升起到了促进作用。本文的发现支持了高等教育对大学生能力的提升得益于教育的人才培育功能，而非筛选功能。更多还原

【Abstract】 Does the ability of college graduates decline after China’s higher education expansion? The answer to this question often becomes the focus of the debate on how to evaluate the effect of China’s higher education expansion policy. Using the data of CFPS 2014 and CFPS 2016, this paper systematically compares the differences in cognitive skills among college graduates before and after the enrollment expansion. More specifically, this paper uses the numeracy and arithmetic reasoning abilities to identify the talent cultivation function of education, and the literacy and memory abilities to identify the screening function of education. The results of cohort difference-in-differences(DID) show that the numeracy and arithmetic reasoning abilities of college graduates have significantly improved after the expansion, but their literacy and memory abilities have not changed significantly. Meanwhile, there is no significant difference in college graduates’ cognitive skills due to rural-urban differences, gender differences, different enrollment expansion rates, and differences between undergraduates and graduates from junior college. The mechanism tests show that academic competition and the quality of higher education play a promoting role. Therefore, the talent cultivation rather than the screening function of education dominates the positive role of China’s higher education in the cognitive ability of college graduates.更多还原