ERIC Number: EJ1236452
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2019
Pages: 42
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1558-2159
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Available Date: N/A
Fertile Soil? How Information Does (and Does Not) Shape Attitudes toward School Choice in Rural America
Journal of School Choice, v13 n4 p467-508 2019
The role of political factors, specifically of public opinion, in the relatively low penetration of charter schools into rural America remains unclear. We use 8 years of national survey data to demonstrate that rural residents express less support for charter schools than residents of other locales do. We attribute this gap to differences in familiarity with charter schools across these locales rather than to differences in satisfaction with local schools or to differences in demographics, party affiliation, or political ideology. However, using a survey experiment and an oversample of districts with charter schools, we show that increased exposure to these schools or information about them does not boost support in rural communities. Lastly, we demonstrate a similar urban-rural gap in support for private school choice policies such as vouchers and tax credits for private school scholarships.
Descriptors: School Choice, Public Opinion, Charter Schools, Rural Population, Familiarity, Rural Urban Differences, Private Schools, Political Attitudes, Context Effect, Census Figures, Educational Vouchers, Tax Credits, Public Schools, Suburbs, School Districts, Scholarships
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative; Numerical/Quantitative Data
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
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