(The Lion) — A majority of parents in the United States reported exploring different school choices for their children last school year.
That’s according to the National School Choice Awareness Foundation (NSCAF), which released its annual parent survey in conjunction with National School Choice Week.
The poll revealed 60% of parents considered sending their child to a different school last year.
Additionally, 40% said they’d probably consider a new school for at least one of their children in 2025.
The data also showed that Black (68%) and Hispanic (63%) parents were more likely to search for new schools than white (58%) or Asian (59%) parents.
Young parents, those living in metropolitan areas, and those with middle or elementary-aged students were also more likely to consider other options.
Parents are also increasingly considering options besides traditional public schools.
Only a third of families consider traditional public schools, for example, and are likely to think about charter or magnet schools, private schools, online schools, homeschools or microschools.
Nevertheless, traditional public schools and charters were still the most commonly selected model, which NSCAF Vice President Shelby Doyle chalks up to finances.
“Even with a spike in parent demand for these nonpublic options, the percentage of parents who enrolled their children in private-sector schools after considering them remains relatively low,” Doyle said. “This may be due to the cost of attendance for families, even with the expansion of private school choice programs such as education savings accounts (ESAs).
“It also highlights that expanding school choice in one sector of schooling is not a panacea for all families; many types of high-quality options are needed for every family to find the right fit.”
While some observers thought the education landscape would return to the status quo after the COVID-19 pandemic, NSCAF’s data shows the appetite for more choices is increasing.
According to 2022 data, 52% of parents were searching for new schools, eight percentage points fewer than the latest data.
NSCAF also found parents report being better informed about school choice than before.
“School choice supporters should feel incredibly encouraged that more families say they have the information they need about school choice for their kids,” said Andrew Campanella, CEO of NSCAF.
“This data point, along with the higher percentage of parents who told us they regularly talk about school choice, suggests that investments in public awareness are having an impact. This is the sign of a movement that is maturing and becoming more durable.”
