Based on arguments about the need for greater individual freedom, school choice was introduced in Sweden in the 1990s. Swedish municipalities now set up local school choice systems, whose organization varies between municipalities. This study is based on interviews with three politicians and two civil servants from two average-sized municipalities…

I calculate the cost-effectiveness of private schools participating in school voucher programs, independent charter schools, and district-authorized charter schools, compared to traditional public schools in Wisconsin for the 2017-18 school year. I calculate cost-effectiveness by dividing the Accountability Report Card score for each school by the…

Conventional wisdom suggests that evangelical Christians, often among the most vocal advocates of school choice efforts in the U.S., are promoting choice out of a sense of frustration with public schools and perceived bias against religion. Research by Marilyn Anderson Rhames, however, suggests that evangelicals are no more concerned about…

We examine the effects of disseminating academic performance data--either status, growth, or both--on parents' school choices and their implications for racial, ethnic, and economic segregation. We conduct an online survey experiment featuring a nationally representative sample of parents and caretakers of children age 0-12. Participants choose…

Through the years, education policy has changed and shifted to include the issue of choice in politics and policy. Charter schools have increased in Texas and tax credit and voucher systems have been implemented in many parts of the United States. Due to this increased presence of choice, public schools responded with the implementation and…

In this study, the researcher examined the idea of the Catholic School Advantage (CSA), whether it is a quantifiable effect, or if it can be explained by selection bias on the part of parents. Additionally, the researcher sought to examine if this selection bias, if it exists, could explain any academic achievement differences between Catholic…

This poll was conducted between April 26-May 6, 2023 among a sample of 961 Teachers. The interviews were conducted online. Results based on the full survey have a measure of precision of plus or minus 3.46 percentage points. Among the key findings are: (1) Private school and charter school teachers say they are thriving to a much higher degree…

This paper examines the impact of the Indiana Choice Scholarship Program on student achievement for low-income students in upper elementary and middle school who used a voucher to transfer from public to private schools during the first four years of the program. We analyzed student-level longitudinal data from public and private schools taking…

New York State's system of public elementary and secondary schools is in steep decline, but it is salvageable. The roots of its problems pre-date the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, but the system's response to that challenge accelerated discontent with the schools and harmed students. The damage of those years will not be undone if…

Providing improved educational options for low-income African American families has been one of the primary objectives of the charter school movement. However, among demographically similar families, school choosers may possess subtle advantages compared to nonchoosers, leading to biased estimates of charter school performance in nonexperimental…

This poll was conducted between January 6-9, 2023 among a sample of 2,200 adults. The interviews were conducted online and the data were weighted to approximate a target sample of adults based on gender, educational attainment, age, race, and region. Among the key findings are: (1) Among those parents reporting a child switching school types,…

This poll was conducted between July 14-July 15, 2022 among a sample of 2,200 adults. The interviews were conducted online and the data were weighted to approximate a target sample of adults based on gender, educational attainment, age, race, and region. Among the key findings are: (1) Parents most frequently reported their children participating…

Debates in education policy draw on different theories about how to raise children's achievement. The "school competition" theory holds that achievement rises when families can choose among competing schools. The school resource theory holds that achievement rises with school spending and resources that spending can buy. The "family…

Recent research on statewide voucher programs in Louisiana and Indiana has found that public school students that received vouchers to attend private schools subsequently scored lower on reading and math tests compared to similar students that remained in public schools. The magnitudes of the negative impacts were large. A case to use taxpayer…

Language immersion programs are becoming more available as a form of school choice in both private and public education in the United States and beyond. While there is research on the benefits of immersion education regarding overall intelligence, there is still much skepticism as to why parents would place their child in an immersion program vs.…