This paper analyzes the impact of voucher design on student sorting in the application and enrollment phases of parental choice. Much of the existing literature investigates the question of sorting where private schools can screen students. However, the publicly funded U.S. voucher programs require private schools to accept all students unless…

The post-communist Czech Republic provides a laboratory in which to investigate possible responses to the adoption of universal education vouchers. Private schools appear to have arisen in response to distinct market incentives. They are more common in fields where public school inertia has resulted in an under-supply of available slots. They are…

One of the pillars of the educational voucher system is that competition among schools to attract students would improve the quality of the education. Surveys to parents and previous work suggested that families rank the distance of the school from their home as the most important factor for choosing a school. They also suggest that parents…

This paper examines the competitive effects of a unique school choice program implemented in the late 1990s, Wisconsin's open enrollment program, which allows families to send their children to schools outside their home district. In contrast to other school choice programs, districts not only face negative consequences from losing students and…

This paper provides detailed evidence regarding the nature of selection into a school voucher system. We use micro-data on scholarship applications matched with state student-level records on test scores, schools attended, and demographic background characteristics to describe the attributes of students who choose to participate in Florida's…

A widely accepted result in the literature is that the majority of voters are against the introduction of universal vouchers. Chen and West (2000) predict that voters' attitudes towards selective vouchers (SV) may be different. They claim that voters are indifferent between the no-voucher and SV regimes, unless competition leads to a reduction in…

Because entrepreneurial activity is a key source of economic growth, promoting youth entrepreneurship has become a priority for policymakers. School choice programs force administrators and teachers to be more entrepreneurial in their jobs by encouraging innovation and by creating competition and a more business-like environment in K-12 education.…

This paper estimates the impact of private education on the academic achievement of low-income students in Chile. To deal with selection bias, we use propensity score matching to compare the test scores of reduced-fee paying, low-income students in fee-charging private voucher schools to those of similar students in public schools and free private…

This article considers two issues regarding preschool education. First, it provides a brief set of arguments for government funding of universal, pre-school education. Second, it explores the applicability of a voucher plan using a regulated market approach for the funding of universal, pre-school education. Four criteria are used to assess the…

Examines Milwaukee Parental Choice Program data to determine whether students with unobserved characteristics correlated with achievement are more likely to apply to the voucher program. Nonapplicants have higher math and reading tests scores. However, applicants have no unmeasured characteristics (like motivation) that differ significantly from…

Survey data from 759 persons who voted in a voucher proposal that appeared on the November 1978 ballot in Michigan are analyzed. Results indicate that income and public school quality are inversely related to the support for the voucher. The probability of favoring the voucher increases among African Americans, Catholics, and families with…

Using data from Illinois, I examine relationships between the number of private schools and characteristics of the public schools and surrounding population. I find positive, statistically significant relationships between number of private schools in 1998 and public school 3rd grade class size, the percent college educated, and the percent over…

Considers both market choice and public choice mechanisms with respect to their efficiencies in producing social and private benefits. A market approach to education appears superior regarding private benefits, whereas the public choice appears superior regarding social benefits. Neither system is cost effective, although the market system yields…

Critiques Henry Levin's "Economics of Educational Choice" essay for confining discussion to a constrained, regulated voucher type of market system. Insists that public school/voucher systems involve significant welfare costs associated with tax collection and presents five other itemized responses to Levin. (four references) (MLH)

Uses a model of student and school behavior to simulate effects of differing voucher amounts on students in different income categories, drawing on two major assumptions concerning service delivery and competition. Poor youngsters would not be better off under voucher system. Even under highly favorable conditions, a systemic choice system would…