Sibling Spillovers and Special Education Access

• In Event: Mentorship and Peer Effects in Education

Abstract

Sibling relationships represent some of the longest-lasting and most influential bonds in an individual’s life playing a crucial role in development. However, few educational policy analyses have considered how changes in one sibling’s educational environment influence the others. This research aims to determine how unexpected reductions in SE access for one child impact their non-disabled siblings. Specifically, we analyze the spillover effects that emerged after a policy change in Texas during the 2004-2005 school year that mandated a sharp reduction in SE enrollment from 13.1% to 8.5% per district.


To achieve this, we construct a novel dataset by linking Texas birth records (1976-1997) to administrative data from the Texas Schools Project (TSP). This dataset enables us to match siblings and analyze key educational and labor market outcomes. Our main data source includes student-level K-12 records from the Texas Education Agency (TEA), which provide yearly details on demographics, academic outcomes, and SE participation. The records are also linked to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) data, providing information on postsecondary enrollment and degree attainment.


We adopt a difference-in-difference research design, exploiting pre-policy variation in SE rates across Texas school districts. Our analysis focuses on non-disabled students whose siblings were in SE programs before the policy change. We compare changes in test scores and educational attainment of these non-disabled siblings in districts with higher versus lower pre-policy SE rates. By examining the varying policy exposure across different grade cohorts, we estimate the average effect of reduced SE access on siblings of SE students. Our findings reveal positive spillover effects on the non-disabled sibling, driven primarily by larger age gaps with no differential effects by gender. This suggests that the impact stems from shifts in parental investments rather than direct sibling influences. Qualitative evidence indicates that parents, largely unaware of the policy’s implementation, likely perceived the removal of special education services as a positive signal of the SE child’s improved ability, leading them to reallocate more resources toward the non-disabled sibling.

Authors

• Briana Ballis, University of California, Merced
  Non-Presenting Co-Author

• Emily Dieckmann, University of California, Merced
  Presenting Author

• Jose Rosa, University of California, Merced
  Non-Presenting Co-Author