Public Pre-K School Choice: Parental Transmission of Resources at School Entry

Erin Baumgartner , Rice University

To date, the youngest students in public education, pre-kindergarten (“pre-k”) students, have been largely ignored in the literature on public school choice (Hastings, et. al., 2005; Hastings et. al. 2007; Schneider, et al, 1997). This study examines the mechanisms through which parental knowledge and preferences are associated with both exercising school choice and with subsequent student outcomes through the lens of social capital. I consider the role of space in providing access to public pre-k programs, and how local availability of programs may play a role in how and whether families chose to enroll their children in programs outside of their neighborhood and what these decisions may mean for student literacy outcomes in pre-k.

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 Presented in Session 70. Parenting