The Impact of Targeted vs. General Education Investments: Evidence from Special Education and English Language Learners in Boston Charter SchoolsElizabeth Setrenauthoreducation reformachievement gapeducation production functionschool financespecial educationEnglish Language Learnerscharter schoolsK-12 EducationInequalityMarkets (vouchers, choice, for-profits, vendors)Multiple outcomes of educationProgram and policy effects2019Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown UniversityUsing novel variation in special education and English Language Learner classification from admissions lotteries, I find that students can achieve large academic gains without specialized services. Enrolling in a Boston charter school doubles the likelihood that students lose their special education or English Language Learner status, but exposes students to a high-performing general education program that includes high intensity tutoring, data driven instruction, and increased instructional time. The positive effects extend to college: charters nearly double the likelihood that English Language Learners enroll in four-year colleges and quadruple the likelihood that special education students graduate from two-year college. A multiple instrument strategy suggests that high quality general education practices drive the gains and finds no detrimental effect from lower classification rates.engtextgrey literatureedworkingpapers.com10.26300/w3wj-ar07In Copyright