Abstract
Since the 1970s, poorer school districts lacking educational resources have formed coalitions and sued their respective states. Their lawsuits claim that interdistrict variations in educational resources violate state constitutions because they deny poorer school districts an equal educational opportunity. Using data from school districts in Virginia, this research investigates two questions. First, whether a school district's level of educational resources is associated with its socioeconomic characteristics. Second, whether interdistrict variations in student outcomes (achievements, attainments and aspirations) are associated with interdistrict variations in educational resources. Our results indicate that resources are associated with a school district's socioeconomic characteristics and that resources are associated with student outcomes. However, there is evidence of effects of resources on student outcomes only for attainments and aspirations, not for math and reading test scores.
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