The Multilayered Process of Kindergarten School Choice in New York City

• In Event: Navigating and Negotiating Choice in Competitive Educational Marketplaces

Abstract

The Kindergarten choice process is complex for many families in New York City shaped partly by personal preference but also by local context. This qualitative study employs Bell’s (2009) choice set theory to explore Kindergarten school choice in three public schools. The families relied on multiple sources of information. They felt overwhelmed and uncertain about how the process worked. Many put a great deal of effort toward researching and touring schools. They considered factors such as location, pedagogical style, environment and peer group. Families from each focal school constructed a vastly different initial choice set based on where they lived. They went through various rounds of the process sometimes spanning multiple years before settling on a school.

Author

• Elisabeth Kim, Rutgers University - Newark