How low-income parents use choice

Lindalyn Kakadelis

January 10, 2007

This new report refutes some common assumptions about how low-income parents make school-choice decisions, and finds that these parents use the same techniques and tools, and are just as satisfied with their decisions, as wealthier parents.

Researchers working for CRPE’s Doing School Choice Right initiative zero in on school-choice decisions made by 800 low- to moderate-income families in three cities.

The parents surveyed rely on multiple sources of information but trust word-of-mouth more than documentation; seek quality schools but limit the number they examine; and feel well-informed and appear satisfied with the school-choice decisions they make. The parents have specific ideas about what their individual children need in a school and try to find the right match.

Read more about this report and find a printable copy at the Center on Reinventing Public Education.

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