Taxpayers want to know where their money is going and whether additional funds are justified.
Researchers are themselves divided.
Some find that dramatic increases in funding over recent decades have brought little or no advancement in student achievement. Others are more optimistic, claiming that some expenditures are tied to improved achievement. Most of these studies were inconclusive. The most common outcomes measured in such studies are standardized test results, graduation rates, dropout rates, college attendance patterns, and labor-market outcomes. This type of research culminated in Eric Hanushek's 1989 study, which analyzed results of 187 production studies published during the previous 20 years.