Fwd: [ARN-state] Test Scores and Real Estate Prices

[Susan Harman <susanharman@igc.org>]

Begin forwarded message:

> From: Bob Schaeffer <bobschaeffer@earthlink.net>
> Date: Fri Jul 14, 2006  6:30:00 AM US/Pacific
> To: ARN Main List <arn-l@interversity.org>,  ARN State 
> <ARN-state@yahoogroups.com>
> Subject: [ARN-state] Test Scores and Real Estate Prices
> Reply-To: ARN-state@yahoogroups.com
>
>
>           Student Proficiency Test Scores Impact Home Values, Study 
> Finds
>
>        COLUMBUS, Ohio, July 12 (AScribe Newswire) -- Student scores on
> state proficiency tests affect more than just education issues - they
> play an important role in house prices, a new study suggests.
>
>        While it has been well-known that homebuyers pay attention to
> schools when considering which house to buy, this research shows how
> potential buyers are evaluating school quality, said Donald Haurin,
> co-author of the study and professor of economics at Ohio State 
> University.
>
>        The study of Ohio school districts showed that an increase of
> about 20 percentage points in the proficiency test "pass rate" 
> increased
> house values in a district about 7 percent, even after taking into
> account other factors that impact house values.
>
>        Another measure of school quality - how proficiency test pass
> rates improved between the 4th and 9th grades - didn't have such a
> strong impact on house values.
>
>        The results suggest that, when evaluating school districts,
> homebuyers are looking at the end result of education - overall test
> scores - and not a value-added approach that considers how well schools
> do in improving students, Haurin said.
>
>        These findings add another factor to consider in the debate 
> about
> whether proficiency tests are good for students, schools and 
> communities.
>
>        "If parents and residents are paying attention to test outcomes,
> and not a value-added approach, that means school boards need to pay
> attention to outcomes too," Haurin said. "But focusing on test scores
> may not be the best way to achieve the goal of educating students to 
> the
> best of their abilities."
>
>        Haurin conducted the study with David Brasington of Louisiana
> State University. They published their results in a recent issue of the
> Journal of Regional Science.
>
>        The researchers looked at 77,578 house-buying transactions in 
> the
> year 2000 in seven urban areas in Ohio. The transactions occurred in 
> 310
> different school districts.
>
>        House prices in individual districts were correlated with the
> percentage of students passing all parts of the 4th and 9th grade
> proficiency tests administered to public school students in these
> districts.
>
>        Haurin said there were good reasons to believe parents and
> homebuyers would be most interested in schools that did best in the
> value-added approach -- improving test scores of their students between
> 4th and 9th grade.
>
>        Most importantly, overall test scores may reflect more on
> parental advantages than school quality.
>
>        A student from a privileged background, in a high-income school
> district, may arrive at school well-prepared and start out scoring well
> on standardized tests. Years of schooling may not improve that 
> student's
> scores. "That school district will look good on average test scores no
> matter what it does with its students. And its high rating may not be
> deserved," Haurin said.
>
>        On the other hand, a disadvantaged student in a different school
> district could end up improving his test scores more than the 
> privileged
> student, all because he went to a high-quality school. But in the end,
> if his test scores are not as high as that of the privileged student,
> the school will not get as much credit, at least in terms of house 
> prices.
>
>        "So you can't look only at proficiency test scores as an outcome
> and say that is a measure of school quality," Haurin said. "But that's
> what homebuyers in our study did when they were looking for houses."
>
>        The emphasis on test scores has a real impact on housing prices,
> he said.
>
>        "In Ohio, there are districts with 20 percent pass rates and 
> some
> with 85 percent pass rates, so based on our findings that would result
> in about a 23 percent difference in house values solely because of the
> schools. It is not trivial amount," he said.
>
>        One problem for school districts is that the value-added 
> approach
> is difficult for researchers to measure, and difficult for the public 
> to
> understand. Proficiency test scores, however, are readily available and
> easy to understand, which makes them more influential with the public,
> Haurin said.
>
>        These results suggest that some school boards may have a
> difficult time convincing residents, as well as potential homebuyers,
> that they have good schools in their district.
>
>        "The disadvantage that some school districts have is that they
> may be doing very well in terms of adding value to their students'
> education, but still may not be among the top scorers in the state. And
> the reason may not be because of the schools but because their students
> don't have the parental advantages that students in other districts 
> have."
>
>        The issue may become critical when a district is asking for a 
> new
> or larger levy, and must convince residents that the schools are doing 
> a
> good job.
>
>        "If residents look just at test scores, and see they are not as
> high as in some districts, they may conclude that the school district 
> is
> not doing as well. Well, the school district could be doing quite well
> in adding value to the students' education."
>
>        - - - -
>
>        CONTACTS: Donald Haurin, 614-292-6809; Haurin.2@osu.edu
>
>        Jeff Grabmeier, Ohio State Research Communications, 
> 614-292-8457;
> Grabmeier.1@osu.edu
>
>
>
>
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