The Study

Since 1994, virtually all revenue for Michigan schools has been distributed by the state on a per pupil basis. The only option for schools who seek to increase revenue is to attract more students. Competition for students in Michigan is a zero-sum game, meaning one school¹s gain is another¹s loss. In the meantime, the state has expanded the choices available to parents through both charter schools and interdistrict choice plans. Have these policies helped improve schools, especially those serving the poorest students in the state? In this article, professors David Arsen, David N. Plank and Gary Sykes explore this issue and the impact a ³market² approach has had on schooling.

The Findings

Arsen, Plank and Sykes review research, explain school policies in the state and cite statistics on changing school populations. What they conclude is that most Michigan localities have been affected little by changes in school choice policies. For example, in wealthy suburban districts, charter schools cannot match the level of services already provided, so they pose no competitive threat. Likewise, school choice creates no competitive pressures on rapidly growing communities. Charter schools also are unlikely to produce systemic improvements in rural areas because the potential market for new schools is too thin. Within metropolitan areas, charter schools and interdistrict choice are drawing students primarily from central cities and moderate-income suburbs. In some of these districts, the threat or reality of large losses of students and revenues has provided the impetus for positive changes, as in the Lansing school district. Due to a steady exodus of students to charter schools and nearby districts, Lansing schools responded with a variety of new initiatives including all-day kindergarten and magnet schools. These efforts have paid off in stable enrollments and budgets after several years of decline. In Michigan¹s most hard-pressed urban districts, however, choice policies have overwhelmed the local capacity to respond and accelerated a spiral of decline. These districts, which include the Detroit Public Schools, serve most of the poorest students in Michigan. Rather than spurring improvement, choice policies have made conditions in their schools even bleaker.

What It Means to You

The researchers make the point that policy makers who aim to improve the educational opportunities available to the poorest students will have to develop strategies to turn around these schools. Does your district have a plan in place that responds to school choice issues? What strategies have policy makers adopted for this market environment?

For More Information

Arsen, D., Plank, D. N. and Sykes, G. (2001, Winter) A Work in Progress. Education Next, 14-19. This article also can be downloaded at www.educationnext.org.

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