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Parental choice and school markets: The impact of information approximating school effectiveness

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  • Alejandra Mizala
  • Miguel Urquiola

Abstract

The impact of competition on academic outcomes is likely to depend on whether parents are informed about schools’ effectiveness or valued added (which may or may not be correlated with absolute measures of their quality), and on whether this information influences their school choices. To explore these issues, this paper considers Chile’s SNED program, which seeks to identify effective schools, selecting them from within “homogeneous groups” of arguably comparable institutions. Its results are widely disseminated and the information it generates is quite different from that conveyed by a simple test-based ranking of schools (which in Chile, turns out to largely resemble a ranking based on socioeconomic status). We rely on a sharp regression discontinuity to estimate the effect that being identified as a SNED winner has on schools’ enrollment, tuition levels, and socioeconomic composition. Through five applications of the program, we find no consistent evidence that winning a SNED award affects these outcomes. This suggests that information on school effectiveness—at least as it is calculated and delivered by the SNED—might not much affect school markets.

Suggested Citation

  • Alejandra Mizala & Miguel Urquiola, 2007. "Parental choice and school markets: The impact of information approximating school effectiveness," Documentos de Trabajo 239, Centro de Economía Aplicada, Universidad de Chile.
    • Handle: RePEc:edj:ceauch:239
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Taut, Sandy & Corts, Flavio & Sebastian, Christian & Preiss, David, 2009. "Evaluating school and parent reports of the national student achievement testing system (SIMCE) in Chile: Access, comprehension, and use," Evaluation and Program Planning, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 129-137, May.
    2. Burgess, Simon & Wilson, Deborah & Worth, Jack, 2013. "A natural experiment in school accountability: The impact of school performance information on pupil progress," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 57-67.
    3. Camargo, Braz & Camelo, Rafael & Firpo, Sergio & Ponczek, Vladimir, 2014. "Information, Market Incentives, and Student Performance," IZA Discussion Papers 7941, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    4. Gabriela Toledo Román & Juan Pablo Valenzuela, 2015. "Over-estimating the effects of teacher attributes on school performance in the Chilean education system," Estudios de Economia, University of Chile, Department of Economics, vol. 42(1 Year 20), pages 99-128, June.
    5. Chakrabarti, Rajashri & Roy, Joydeep, 2016. "Do charter schools crowd out private school enrollment? Evidence from Michigan," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 88-103.
    6. Anna Pons & Jeremie Amoroso & Jan Herczynski & Igor Kheyfets & Marlaine Lockheed & Paulo Santiago, 2015. "OECD Reviews of School Resources," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 22892, December.
    7. Gershberg, Alec Ian & González, Pablo Alberto & Meade, Ben, 2012. "Understanding and Improving Accountability in Education: A Conceptual Framework and Guideposts from Three Decentralization Reform Experiences in Latin America," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(5), pages 1024-1041.
    8. Vegas, Emiliana & Ganimian, Alejandro, 2013. "Theory and Evidence on Teacher Policies in Developed and Developing Countries," IDB Publications (Working Papers) 4597, Inter-American Development Bank.

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