ERIC Number: EJ1024185
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013
Pages: 29
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1558-2159
EISSN: N/A
Parental Voucher Enrollment Decisions: Choice within Choice in New Orleans
Beabout, Brian R.; Cambre, Belinda M.
Journal of School Choice, v7 n4 p560-588 2013
Set in the context of a choice-saturated public school system, this study examines the school choice process of low-income parents who participated in Louisiana's 2008 voucher program. Based on semistructured interviews with 16 parents at 1 Catholic school, we report that spirituality, small class and school size, character/values, familiarity, discipline, and parent communication all were factors important to parents. Notably, participants appear to have based their decisions more on the familiar brand of Catholic schooling rather than verifiable characteristics of the school they selected. Policy implications include the need to recognize the power of branding in local education markets, the need for publically provided school directories, and an argument for centralized support for school marketing as a region becomes increasingly marketized.
Descriptors: Educational Vouchers, School Choice, Decision Making, Low Income Groups, Semi Structured Interviews, Parents, Catholic Schools, Religious Factors, Small Classes, School Size, Values, Familiarity, Discipline, Parent School Relationship, Institutional Characteristics, School Safety, African Americans, Private Schools, Gender Differences
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 325 Chestnut Street Suite 800, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Fax: 215-625-2940; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Kindergarten; Grade 1; Grade 2; Grade 3; Grade 4; Early Childhood Education; Elementary Education; Primary Education; Intermediate Grades
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Louisiana
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A