ERIC Number: ED677369
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Sep
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: 0000-00-00
NEPC Review: "Helping Families Navigate the Changing Education Landscape" (Cato Institute, June 2024)
Huriya Jabbar
National Education Policy Center
The past few years have seen significant growth in the newest form of voucher, called Educational Savings Accounts (ESAs), which are publicly funded savings accounts that parents can use not just for private-school tuition but also for other eligible expenses, including tutoring, curriculum, and sports equipment. A recent Cato Institute report argues for adding, as an eligible expense in state ESA programs, "choice navigators," individuals who help families identify and enroll in educational programs that meet their child's needs. The report correctly identifies a documented challenge in school choice policy--families' differential access to information and resources needed to successfully access and enroll in educational programs. However, the report cites almost no research and provides minimal evidence, aside from a few handpicked testimonials, to support its claims about choice navigators as helpful in addressing these challenges. Accordingly, the report asks readers to simply accept the purported benefits of these consultants or choice navigators for families. Given the lack of new evidence or support from prior literature, the report's conclusions are not valid or useful to policymakers.
Descriptors: Educational Change, Educational Vouchers, School Choice, Parent Materials, Reports, Validity, Criticism, Misconceptions
National Education Policy Center. School of Education 249 UCB University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309. Tel: 303-735-5290; e-mail: nepc@colorado.edu; Web site: http://nepc.colorado.edu
Related Records: ED656471
Publication Type: Reports - Evaluative; Opinion Papers
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice
Authoring Institution: University of Colorado at Boulder, National Education Policy Center (NEPC)
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A

Peer reviewed
