Benefit-cost analysis consists of establishing ratios of benefits to costs for a set of project variants. The decision rule is to select that project variant where the ratio is a maximum. This paper argues that specification and estimation errors can contribute to findings for large-scale systems of benefit-cost ratios approximating zero. The…

Response to a recent article in this journal by Ewald and Kiker. Provides a costing methodology based on a similar application of input-output theory but one that is completely general with regard to possible program interrelationships. (Author/JH)

Mathematical model building for educational planning in this country has been heavily influenced by the USOE DYNAMOD Model, a computerized Markov-type or input-output model. However, the input-output method is structurally inadequate to reflect the true behavior of the educational system. To introduce some elements of decision making into the…

This publication is a discussion of the concept of an educational production function, a mathematical formulation of the relationship between inputs and outputs in education. A description of how a production function can direct decision making toward economic efficiency precedes a theoretical discussion of the nature of actual estimation. Several…

Resource optimization in building design is based on the total system over its expected useful life. Alternative environmental systems can be evaluated in terms of resource costs and goal effectiveness. (Author/MF)

This is a preliminary report of a project which has as its goal the construction of a mathematical model representing the interrelationships among certain categories of phenomena of the secondary school. These phenomena are classified as being either administratively uncontrollable input, administratively controllable input, or output…

There are basically four dimensions to a systems analysis that we find in current educational research: (1) Collecting information, (2) analyzing input-output relationships, (3) deriving models built upon these relationships to evaluate alternatives and to derive feasible solutions, and (4) attempting to derive the best solution consistent with…

In the last decade, a modeling technique has been developed to handle complex input/output analyses where outputs involve joint products and there are no known mathematical relationships linking the outputs or inputs. The technique uses the geometrical concept of a six-dimensional shape called a polytope to analyze the efficiency of each…

The interests of economists in educational systems have taken two directions: (1) Concern for the interchange of resources between educational systems and the national economy, and (2) an interest in the production of education. In expressing the resource interchange, economists rely on the language of productivity. Of concern is the global…

Aimed at federal, State, and local educational administrators; educational researchers familiar with cost-benefit analysis and econometrics; and economists interested in problems of educational finance, this study explores the applicability of an econometric model of evaluation to the efficiency of schools. The emphasis is on assessing school…

The purpose of this study was to develop the schema and methodology for the construction of a computerized mathematical model designed to project college and university enrollments in New York State and to meet the future increased demands of higher education planners. This preliminary report describes the main structure of the proposed computer…

Begins with a discussion of cost and efficiency in education. Presents an empirical model to estimate school-level economies of scale. Applies model to expenditure data set by school from 17 Wyoming school districts. Finds that it costs more per student in a small school than in large schools to achieve similar educational outcomes, thus…

Production function applications to improve the efficiency of educational programs require identification of inputs and outputs and the establishment of a data bank to provide information on input and output variables. This generalizable input identification model organizes inputs for systems analysis at various levels of inputs and provides a…

The paper specifies mathematically the demand and supply functions for interacting factor markets to characterize the impact of alternative antipoverty programs. Wage subsidies were found to be the most transfer-efficient, implying that education and training is the most cost-effective means of aiding the low-skilled. (MF)

Two related problems are discussed: developing a methodology which (1) will not require full commitment of a local education agency to new techniques which may be ineffective in local settings and (2) will allow graceful abandonment of a new technology that may be proved ineffective. An example is discussed. (CTM)