RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Do Funds for More Teachers Improve Student Outcomes?
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
SP 0523-12892R2
DO 10.3368/jhr.0523-12892R2
A1 Borgen, Nicolai T.
A1 Kirkebøen, Lars J.
A1 Kotsadam, Andreas
A1 Raaum, Oddbjørn
YR 2025
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2025/02/28/jhr.0523-12892R2.abstract
AB We investigate the effects of a large-scale Norwegian intervention that provided extra teachers to 166 lower secondary schools with relatively high student-teacher ratios and low average grades. We exploit these two margins using a regression discontinuity setup and find that the intervention reduced the student-teacher ratio by around 10%, without crowding out other school resources. The extra funding did not improve test scores and medium-term academic outcomes, and we can reject even small positive effects. We do find that more teachers improved the school environment, including self-reported student well-being, but with the largest impact on aspects of the school environment most weakly associated with better academic outcomes.