Cost, cost-effectiveness, and benefit-cost analysis are methods used by economists to evaluate public policies. Essentially, these methods rely on impact evaluations, that is, research studies of efficacy and effectiveness. However, in most research in education, these cost and impact evaluations are performed separately. This separation creates…

This article systematically reviews the cost study literature as it relates to the treatment of English language learners (ELLs). Despite the substantial number of costing out studies that have been conducted over the past several decades, the school finance literature has failed to focus on ELLs--the fastest growing segment of the school-age…

The cost-effectiveness of class size reduction (CSR) was compared with the cost-effectiveness of rapid formative assessment, a promising alternative for raising student achievement. Drawing upon existing meta-analyses of the effects of student-teacher ratio, evaluations of CSR in Tennessee, California, and Wisconsin, and RAND cost estimates, CSR…