Study: ELLs Less Likely to Take Advantage of District School Choice Programs

Families of English-language-learner students in the Houston school district are less likely to take advantage of the district's robust school choice options than other students, a study from Rice University's Kinder Institute for Urban Research found. The research brief concludes the findings are proof that "that parents should not be treated as a monolithic group when designing and implementing school choice policies." During the 2011-12 academic year, one in three English-learner elementary school students were enrolled in a non-zoned school, versus roughly 46 percent for both former ELLs and those who were never classified as ELLs. In high school, the participation...