U.S. School Finance: Resources and Outcomes / Danielle V. Handel, Eric A. Hanushek.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Handel, Danielle V.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Hanushek, Eric A.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w30769.

NBER working paper series no. w30769

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 2022.

Summary:

The impact of school resources on student outcomes was first raised in the 1960s and has been controversial since then. This issue enters into the decision making on school finance in both legislatures and the courts. The historical research found little consistent or systematic relationship of spending and achievement, but this research frequently suffers from significant concerns about the underlying estimation strategies. More recent work has re-opened the fundamental resource-achievement relationship with more compelling analyses that offer stronger identification of resource impacts. A thorough review of existing studies, however, leads to conclusions similar to those in the historical work: how resources are used is key to the outcomes. At the same time, the research has not been successful at identifying mechanisms underlying successful use of resources or for ascertaining when added school investments are likely to be well-used. Direct investigations of alternative input policies (capital spending, reducing class size, and salary incentives for teachers) do not provide clear support for such specific policy initiatives in the United States.

Notes:

Print version record

December 2022.