The Effects of Home Computers on Educational Outcomes: Evidence from a Field Experiment with Community College Students

There is no clear theoretical prediction regarding whether home computers are an important input in the educational production function. To investigate the hypothesis, we conduct a field experiment involving the random provision of free computers to low-income community college students for home use. Although estimates for a few measures are imprecise and cannot rule out zero effects, we find some evidence that the treatment group achieved better educational outcomes than the control group. The estimated effects, however, are not large and are smaller than non-experimental estimates. There is also some evidence that benefits from home computers increase with distance to campus.