School choice in low income populations: State, market and social inclusion

Abstract

Free school choice is regarded as a key component of market oriented educational reforms, especially when it incorporates private schools. There is an important debate about the consequences of these dynamics for lower social classes, including whether and how low income families will participate in the supply-demand dynamics that market proponents envision. This paper -based on a qualitative study that included interviews and focus groups in a typical low income area of Santiago- attempts to understand the school choice process in the Chilean low social class. Our findings allowed us to identify two types of approaches to school choice: one active and anxious who is fighting in the lower section of the educational market; and another one traditional and pragmatic who remains outside the market, mainly covered by public education. Additionally, we found a generalized strong social view of vocational secondary education, for some parents the sole true “school choice” they have. Each of these “choices” have a thick and complex meaning for low income parents, which is very different from the view of “passive actors” coming from some previous research.