Special Education Substantially Improves Learning: Evidence from Three States

Authors: Stephanie Coffey, Joshua Goodman, Amy Ellen Schwartz, Leanna Stiefel, Marcus A. Winters, Yunee H. Yoon

Project Summary

Special education serves more than one in seven U.S. students, yet its causal impact remains understudied. In this paper, we estimate the effect of individualized supports with an event-study design that tracks achievement around initial classification. The research shows students’ scores decline prior to placement and rise sharply afterward. Overall, individualized supports substantially increase learning productivity.

Key Findings

• Consistent positive effects across all three states studied.
• Effects are substantially larger than prior estimates.
• Gains are immediate and continue to grow over time.
• Gains reflect genuine learning, not testing accommodations.
• Effects are broadly consistent across student subgroups and school settings.