> My experience with educational research is that researchers find per-pupil expense is directly correlated to improved achievement on standardized academic me

> My experience with educational research is that researchers find per-pupil expense is directly correlated to improved achievement on standardized academic measures across all areas and for all variables in race/ethnicity, gender, age, and (obviously) socioeconomic status. My experience as a teacher is to struggle to understand how it can't be directly correlated. Of course well-paid, well-benefited teachers are going to work harder, but there's much more to school funding than teacher pay. Quality of the school building, newer textbooks, all of that stuff comes into play with per-pupil funding. It's not hard to imagine that schools with higher per-pupil funding will have better resources and environments conducive to learning.