The Economics of School Choice
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Bristol
Department Name: Economics
Abstract
This research would use newly available data to contribute methodological and substantive findings to the existing literature.
The three central research questions are described in detail in my research statement, but in brief are:
(1) The causal impact of schools on pupil attainment
(2) Parents' preferences for schools and therefore whether school choice has the potential to increase school effectiveness
(3) A structural model of joint residential and school choices, which would allow simulation of the allocation of pupils to schools under
alternative admissions arrangements.
Each question uses newly available administrative data on parents' preferences for state schools in England, combined with data on pupil and
school attainment and geographical data.
The resulting articles from my research questions would aim for publication in a top-ranking journal, and would also have relevance for public
policy.
The three central research questions are described in detail in my research statement, but in brief are:
(1) The causal impact of schools on pupil attainment
(2) Parents' preferences for schools and therefore whether school choice has the potential to increase school effectiveness
(3) A structural model of joint residential and school choices, which would allow simulation of the allocation of pupils to schools under
alternative admissions arrangements.
Each question uses newly available administrative data on parents' preferences for state schools in England, combined with data on pupil and
school attainment and geographical data.
The resulting articles from my research questions would aim for publication in a top-ranking journal, and would also have relevance for public
policy.
Organisations
People |
ORCID iD |
| Simon Burgess (Primary Supervisor) | |
| Ellen Greaves (Student) |
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ES/J50015X/1 | 01/10/2011 | 02/10/2021 | |||
| 1759672 | Studentship | ES/J50015X/1 | 01/10/2016 | 20/11/2021 | Ellen Greaves |
| ES/P000630/1 | 01/10/2017 | 30/09/2027 | |||
| 1759672 | Studentship | ES/P000630/1 | 01/10/2016 | 20/11/2021 | Ellen Greaves |
| Description | School quality is an important determinant of students' long-term outcomes. Assignment to schools is therefore an important lever to address inequality in society. This thesis studies two aspects of the design of school choice that influence this assignment. First, I study parents' preferences for school quality. I find that parents in England often make active school choices and bypass the nearest school if it has low quality. Using a triple differences design, I estimate the causal effect of school quality information on parental school choice. I find that positive information increases the likelihood parents choose a school, regardless of their socio-economic status. In addition, positive information increases the number of applications schools receive regardless of their place in the local hierarchy. Consequently, school choice increases incentives to improve standards for all schools. I find that incentives are dampened in dense markets, however. Second, I study the interaction between school and residential choices. Residential choices may be influenced by local school quality if schools rank applicants by geographical proximity. Using a difference-in-differences design, I study the causal effect of geographical admissions on residential choices. In line with existing literature, I find that geographical admissions lead to relocations. My results suggest that it is a very local effect, however, driven by a minority of high social class parents trying to access a minority of high performing schools. Studying one such case in depth, I develop a structural model of household decisions in a dynamic setting. This model reveals spillovers from geographical admissions to households without children. In contrast to existing literature, it shows that price premia around 'good' schools are driven by relocation decisions of households with and without children. Lastly, the model allows me to study the effect of an alternative policy on school and neighbourhood integration. |
| Exploitation Route | The outcomes could be used by the Department for Education to inform school choice policy and individual schools. For the second research question, schools may choose to implement alternative school admissions criteria to improve the diversity of their intake. |
| Sectors | Education,Other |
| URL | https://research-information.bris.ac.uk/en/studentTheses/the-economics-of-school-choice-and-sorting |
| Description | Following my PhD research I applied for funding to continue work on school admissions criteria in England (from the Nuffield Foundation). Through this, an interim report was recently released which showed how admissions arrangements vary across areas and school types in England. Following this, the research team have been contacted by the Department for Education, local counsillors, and campaign groups. There was also extensive print and social media coverage. The research team would like to continue this non-academic impact by conducting case studies of schools that have made their admissions criteria more "open" to disadvantaged pupils. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2023 |
| Sector | Education |
| Impact Types | Societal,Policy & public services |
| Description | Meeting with Department for Education |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Policy Influence Type | Membership of a guideline committee |
| Description | Modifying school choice for more equitable outcomes in England |
| Amount | £128,276 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EDO /FR-000023243 |
| Organisation | Nuffield Foundation |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 03/2022 |
| End | 11/2023 |