Durability and debate: How state-level policy actors frame school choice

Abstract

School choice policies have become a prominent feature of K-12 education in recent decades, reflecting the broader institutionalization of market-based political ideology in education. In this qualitative multiple case study, we draw on framing theory and interviews with 57 state-level education policy actors to explore the nature of the continued debate over school choice in five U.S. states. We find five patterns of framing choice as beneficial, centering around five purported goals–quality, equity, liberty, plurality, and innovation–along with critiques of these frames. Our findings illustrate that despite the contested nature of these policies, the broad appeal and flexibility of “choice”’ helps to explain its durability.