Change and Stability in the Curriculum: Schools' Responses to Participating in a Publicly Funded Voucher Program

• In Event: 72.048 - School Vouchers: Impacts and Responses

Abstract

Despite the important role of schools in voucher programs, knowledge of schools’ experiences with voucher programs and their ability to accommodate voucher students is limited. This paper utilizes survey and interview data to analyze change and stability in the core curriculum as a result of private schools’ first year of participation in a publicly-funded voucher program. We find that a majority of schools experienced increases in student demographic and academic diversity. When schools responded by changing the structure of classes, the most common theme was that low-performing students were placed in remedial or low-level classes. Among schools that made curricular changes, the most common theme was the need to develop more resources to accommodate the increase in student academic diversity.

Authors

• Megan Austin, University of Notre Dame

• Mark Berends, University of Notre Dame