We exploit exogenous variation from a school desegregation policy to evaluate the impact of forced busing on bilingual school starters. The policy moved pupils from schools with many Danish as additional language (DAL) pupils and high per-pupil spending to schools with fewer DAL pupils but lower per-pupil spending. Assignment to busing may be regarded as exogenous conditional on three observed individual characteristics. In contrast to the literature on voluntary busing to promote racial school integration, we find that assignment to forced busing has a negative effect on the academic performance and wellbeing of DAL pupils. Our investigation of potential mechanisms shows that bused pupils attend schools with a lower budget per pupil and a lower overall budget for DAL pupils, have a lower enrollment rate in the after-school program in the assigned school, and are more likely to transfer to another public school (after regaining free school choice). Our results suggest that school resources can more than compensate for potential negative peer effects in schools with moderate levels of segregation.
Originalsprog
Engelsk
Udgivelsessted
Aarhus
Udgiver
Institut for Økonomi, Aarhus Universitet
Antal sider
83
Status
Udgivet - maj 2020
Serietitel
Economics Working Papers
Nummer
2020-03
Forskningsområder
School segregation, Integration, Immigration, Education, Peer effects, School resources