Language: English

ISSN: 0010-700X

Abstract/Notes: The proliferation of urban “no-excuses” charter schools has been justified by arguing that Black and Latinx parents want strict discipline. In this article, we examine what discipline means to Black and Latinx families at two popular choice options: a no-excuses charter and two public Montessori magnets. We found that parents viewed discipline as more than rule-following, valuing also self-discipline and academic discipline. While no-excuses parents supported an orderly environment, many found the discipline restrictive. Parents in the Montessori schools, by contrast, praised student autonomy but questioned whether the freedom was preparing their students academically. Our findings reveal a gap between what Black and Latinx parents want and what choice schools and local school choice markets have on offer.

Language: English

DOI: 10.3102/0002831219831972

ISSN: 0002-8312, 1935-1011

Abstract/Notes: Poor literacy rates contribute to low school performance for children across America. In particular, low-income schools continue to struggle with declining literacy rates. Issues with literacy are often attributed to lack of reading comprehension. This study tested the effects of choice on reading comprehension in second- and third-grade students at a high-income school and a low-income school. Students were observed while reading silently and aloud to see if either method affected reading comprehension. Data were collected from 32 students before, during, and after reading to determine whether students’ comprehension levels were higher when given opportunities to choose their own books or when they read assigned books. Trials were performed while students read silently and then aloud. Results indicated that students had higher comprehension levels both when they could choose their own books and when they read silently.

Language: English

DOI: 10.17161/jomr.v3i2.6453

ISSN: 2378-3923

Abstract/Notes: During the transition period in Hungary the role of the market has become more significant, and several market elements have appeared in education, as well. The growing social demand for schooling resulted in the huge expansion of secondary and higher education. Schools try to match the demand with the supply in a colourful variety of programmes. However, public education in Hungary struggles with very great problems of inequalities.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1111/j.1465-3435.2006.00247.x

ISSN: 0141-8211

Abstract/Notes: Traditionally, most systems have required that parents send their children to a school within the district of residence and close to the family home, sometimes with an elite private system co‐existing alongside. In recent years, this basic model has been modified, with some countries witnessing more extensive changes than others. This article outlines the range of change that has taken place along the dual axes of promoting diversity and establishing room for the exercise of parental choice. The synthesis article draws on the material submitted by all the countries participating in the OECD study, and not only those which feature specifically in this issue. The first section reviews the current situation regarding parental choice of school and evidence relating to how that choice is exercised by different groups of parents. For choice to be exercised, there must be alternatives to choose from, and hence there follows a review of some of the policies and practices for diversity. The article then examines diversity in more forms contrasting selective and non‐selective schools, public and private schools, and formal and home schooling. Several countries have moved to greater diversification of public education, allowing for different types of schools accommodating different student ability levels or parents’ educational preferences. The role of demand is clearly a central element in their emergence and differing fortunes. This in turn is closely, but not exclusively, related to the familiar factors of social advantage and reproduction as well as to issues of value choices and beliefs.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1111/j.1465-3435.2006.00245.x

ISSN: 0141-8211

Abstract/Notes: The objective of this study is to identify the important factors contribute most to parents' choice of pre-school for their children. Parents' choice of pre-school is influenced by various factors that are mostly associated with the pre-school institution itself. Parent have different educational believes and preferences which puts them in a dilemma when making decision for their children pre-school education. it is important for pre-school businesses to meet the needs of both parents and children in order to attract and retain their customer. Data was collected using a survey questionnaire. The sample consisted of 162 parents who have pre-school children. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify the predictor variables that contributed to the choice of pre-schools. The main factors that influence parents' choice of pre-schools are branding, private-run institutions, safety and security, quality of teaching and hygiene. English medium and religion-based pre-schools are the preferred pre-schools chosen by these parents.

Language: English

ISSN: 2219-1933, 2219-6021

Abstract/Notes: Pretend play is common in childhood. Yet by age 4, children shown pretend and real activities in a book said they would choose to do the real activity over the pretend one. The present studies extended this research, examining children’s actual behavior in laboratory and school settings (Study 1, n = 32, M = 59.32 months; and Study 2, n = 16, M = 54.08 months), their choices about pretend roles (Study 3, n = 50, M = 59.48 months), and parents’ perspectives on what children prefer (Study 4, n = 83). As in prior work, 4-year-olds preferred real activities from a book; by 5, children also engaged more with real activities. In contrast, 3- to 4-year-olds preferred pretend roles and 5- to 6-year-olds were ambivalent. Parents correctly predicted children’s preference for real activities, but they did not predict that children’s reality preferences increase with age.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1080/15248372.2019.1709469

ISSN: 1524-8372

Language: English

ISSN: 0013-1784, 1943-5878

Abstract/Notes: A key goal of school choice policies is to generate competition between schools, which should theoretically drive school leaders to improve their programs to attract and retain students. However, few studies examine how principals actually perceive and define competition. This article empirically examines school leaders’ conceptions of competition and their strategic behaviors using cognitive frameworks from new institutional theory, including sensemaking theory. Drawing on data from qualitative interviews with 30 charter school leaders in Arizona, we explore how leaders’ cognitive understandings of competition influence their actions in an educational “marketplace.” We find charter school leaders make meaning of “competition” in different ways, influenced by their local contexts and their conceptions of what actions are legitimate. Our work suggests that it is important to study the meanings of competition to school leaders, as it has important implications for schools’ competitive responses and, ultimately, student outcomes. Our work has important implications for policy makers seeking to expand school choice as it sheds light on how competition works in practice, with implications for equity and access.

Language: English

DOI: 10.1080/0161956X.2020.1800174

ISSN: 0161-956X

Language: English