ERIC Number: ED636555
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2023-Dec-7
Pages: 10
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Setting Priorities in School Choice Enrollment Systems: Who Benefits from Placement Algorithm Preferences? Policy Brief
Jon Valant; Brigham Walker
National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice
Many U.S. cities with school choice programs have adopted unified enrollment systems to manage their application and placement processes centrally. Typically, these systems use placement algorithms to assign students to schools. These algorithms make placements based on families' rank-ordered requests, seat availability in schools, and various priorities and lottery numbers that determine students' standing at each school. This study examines the placement algorithm--and broader school request, placement, and enrollment patterns--in New Orleans, which has a citywide system of charter schools. The authors explore whether the priority categories in the New Orleans placement algorithm tend to favor students of certain races or socioeconomic classes. Specifically, the authors examine cases where families of Black and white children, or lower-income and higher-income families, submit the same first-choice requests for kindergarten (a key entry grade for elementary school). In addition to examining whether certain groups of students are more likely than others to get school placements when they vie for the same seats, the authors run simulations to assess how placement patterns might differ with different policies.
Descriptors: School Choice, Enrollment, Student Placement, Algorithms, Preferences, Charter Schools, Racial Differences, African American Students, White Students, Socioeconomic Status, Achievement Rating, Educational Opportunities
National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice. 1555 Poydras Street Suite 700, New Orleans, LA 70112. Tel: 870-540-6576; e-mail: info@reachcentered.org; Web site: https://reachcentered.org/
Related Records: ED636559
Publication Type: Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Institute of Education Sciences (ED)
Authoring Institution: National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice (REACH); Education Research Alliance for New Orleans (ERA)
Identifiers - Location: Louisiana (New Orleans)
IES Funded: Yes
Grant or Contract Numbers: R305C180025