School choice worsens inequality when access prerequisites are unequal

Evidence

However, in its failure to address or acknowledge the differential access of those within the educational “marketplace” (i.e., native Puerto Ricans) who have to make such choices, this model is in opposition to Freire’s views of true liberation of education—that liberation comes when the oppressed are given opportunity to engage in the processes prior to the system being in place (Freire, 1994). In the case of school choice, this would mean that, before the system is introduced, all Puerto Rican families would have equal access to information, transportation, social capital, and any other features of the school choice process. Of course, this was not the case and it is therefore likely that school choice will do little to address existing disparities and may even worsen them (Holme, 2002). — James D. Kirylo (ed.), Reinventing Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 957

Categorization

• XREF: Reinforces the book’s ch10 claim that choice architecture steers decisions even when options look free. — connects to: Differentiated schooling reproduces rather than abolishes class divisions; Formal equal access from unequal starting positions perpetuates exclusion — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race: Reflections on…, 115; Separate-but-equal doctrine equalized nominal access while fixing unequal quality. — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race: Reflections on…, 132 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Differentiated schooling reproduces rather than abolishes class divisions #corroborates (0.90)
• Formal equal access from unequal starting positions perpetuates exclusion #expands (0.85) — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race, 115