School choice

This study offers a better understanding of the reasons why parents from six different countries across the Western hemisphere chose private, non-denominational schools for their children’s education. The findings deepen the knowledge in what is currently an underdeveloped field of research in education. The overarching research question was: What are the primary reasons why parents chose a private nondenominational school in Mexico, Spain, Costa Rica, United States, United Kingdom, and South Africa for their children’s education? To explore this question in depth, the researcher considered five sub-questions and employed a grounded theory qualitative research design. Data were collected twofold through focus groups and individual interviews and analyzed iteratively to develop a fresh theoretical perspective on the topic of parent school choice. Extant literature explains that the most frequent reasons to choose a private school include quality of education, location, participation of parents and being able to be heard, financial resources, and parents’ prior educational experiences. Contributing to the literature, this study revealed four major reasons for private school selection: consideration of private education as an investment for the future, smaller class size, the opportunity for students and their families to establish social contacts, and the academic quality of the school. In addition, three reasons specific to certain countries were identified: importance of learning the English language, quality of the facilities, and extended school day. Finally, eight additional secondary reasons were found including: international character of the school, happiness of the students in the school, distance from parents’ home, quality of the environment, prestige or tradition of the school, private management and organization, values and ethos of the school, and the non-denominational nature of the school. These findings can help private—and public—school administrators make better decisions to improve the quality of their educational offerings in knowing what parents most value. Parents may also find value in understanding the factors for consideration when evaluating public versus private school options. Finally, recommendations for practice and research for the field of education are offered.

Charter schools have often boasted about differentiating themselves in the educational
marketplace. With today’s growing emphasis on student achievement, whether this
differentiation has had a positive effect on student learning is still debatable. The purpose
of this exploratory mixed-methods study was to establish if innovation is a reported
practice in charter schools in Miami-Dade and Sarasota Counties in Florida and to
determine if a relationship exists between innovation reporting and student achievement
as measured by Florida school grades. A qualitative analysis of School Improvement
Plans and school websites for a 62 school sample was utilized. As well as a quantitative
measure of the correlation between level of reported innovation in eight categories
(organizational structure, ideology and culture, leadership models, professional
development for teachers, curriculum, technology, parent involvement, and other) and
student achievement, as measured by Florida’s school grade formula. The study found
that charter schools in both counties reported innovation at high levels with only three schools reporting innovations in fewer than five categories of innovation. An examination
of opposing forces of loose and rigid structure, autonomy and policy control, as well as
creativity and standardization led to findings of less reported instances of innovation on
average in schools with looser structure, autonomy, and creativity. Furthermore, Title I
schools and high minority student population schools (≥50%) showed signs of innovation
saturation, with no value added to student achievement (school grade averages) by
reported innovation beyond a moderate level. Still, reported innovation level (overall
categories of innovation) and student achievement (school grade averages) showed a
negligible relationship (r = -.062). In conclusion, reported innovation existed in charter
schools despite opposing forces, but was often similar across charter schools. In fact,
past a moderate level of innovation, there was no value added to school grades for Title I
and high minority charter schools. Yet, a weak, negative relationship existed between
specific reported innovations in combination (professional development in pedagogy,
tutoring programs, non-district behavior programs and incentive, and multiple levels) and
student achievement (school grade averages) which can inform us on the nature of
reporting.

The face of North America's public education system is changing. Across the United States, hundreds of thousands of students have migrated away from traditional public school into charter schools. While both are considered public schools, often that is where the similarity ends. Claims and counter claims have been made about the virtues and advantages of a charter school versus the traditional public school. This study, focused on the nation's sixth-largest school system in Broward County, Florida, compares comments from stakeholders involved in charter programs to feedback from those still involved in the traditional public system. Three hypotheses are evaluated including: whether traditional schools are not adequately serving the needs of students; whether charter schools are better at serving student needs; or people believe that charter schools are doing a better job at serving the needs of students. Evidence suggests that while each model of education has its advantages and disadvantages, neither clearly provides a ""better" opportunity for students. Conclusions are that consumer perceptions are driving the shift in enrollment. This is attributed to the narrative about "choice" created by charter school advocates that aligns with American ideologies of liberty, freedom and independence. Ultimately, it is argued that the deconstruction of the traditional public education system is part of a larger effort to shift selected rights and privileges out of the public sphere and back into private control. For traditional public schools to regain momentum, they must learn to control the narrative and ultimately public policy and public opinion about our nation's public schools.