Examining Indian American Return Migrants’ K-12 School-Choice Decisions

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Abstract

This article examines how high-skilled, return migrant parents navigate K-12 educational options in India by answering the following research questions: How does where they anticipate their children going for college affect where parents decide to educate their children for high school? Through analyzing 34 interviews, the findings highlight the importance of citizenship as a factor in parents’ school-choice decisions. I argue that return migrants make K-12 school-choice decisions that optimize the higher education options available to their children. As such, the K-12 school-choice decision may be understood as parents’ way of transferring migration-specific capital to their children by ensuring they have the skills necessary to flexibly navigate a competitive, globalized labor market. As such, this article highlights the interconnections between migration, schooling, and citizenship.

Keywords: School choice; Indian Americans; Return Migrants; Citizenship

Author

• Adrienne Lee Atterberry, Syracuse University