Opting out of neighbourhood schools : the role of local education markets in student mobility
Scandurra, Rosario Ivano (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament de Sociologia)
Zancajo, Adrián (University of Manchester. Manchester Institute of Education)
Bonal, Xavier (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Departament de Sociologia)
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Grup de Recerca Globalització, Educació i Politiques Socials

Date:	2021
Abstract:	Open enrolment policies assume that students living in disadvantaged areas can access better schools outside their neighbourhood. However, characteristics of individuals, quality of schooling and neighbourhood characteristics interact in very complex ways to produce heterogeneous patterns of school choice in local educational markets. This article analyses how the geography of educational opportunities, the socioeconomic background of students' families and the characteristics of their residential areas, impact on the travel-to-school distance in Barcelona. Based on a unique data set of school and student registers from Barcelona's local education authority, our study shows that distances travelled by students with the same social background vary depending on the characteristics of educational supply and the income of the neighbourhood. While socially advantaged students tend to travel longer distances than their peers from lower socioeconomic backgrounds, geographical and educational factors mediate to produce high heterogeneity in mobility patterns. Our findings cast doubt on the supposed virtue of school choice to reduce education inequalities and underline the need to consider the diversity of local microeducation markets in policymaking and planning.
Note:	Altres ajuts: acords transformatius de la UAB
Note:	Altres ajuts: Juan de la Cierva (IJC2019-040056-I)
Note:	Altres ajuts: British Academy Postdoctoral Fellowship (PF2\180006)
Rights:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, fins i tot amb finalitats comercials, sempre i quan es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Language:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió acceptada per publicar
Published in:	Population, space and place, Vol. 28, núm. 5 (July 2022) , p. e2542, ISSN 1544-8452

DOI: 10.1002/psp.2542

15 p, 2.3 MB

The record appears in these collections:
Research literature > UAB research groups literature > Research Centres and Groups (research output) > Social and Legal Sciences > Globalisation, Education and Social Policies (GEPS)
Articles > Research articles
Articles > Published articles