Doctoral Dissertations

Date of Award

8-1996

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education

Major

Educational Administration

Major Professor

E. Grady Bogue

Committee Members

George Harris, Mike Hannum, Kathleen DeMarrais

Abstract

This study investigated factors that influence parents to send their children to a public school outside of their school zone. Parental levels of education and income were used as independent variables in a survey that compared the way parents of different backgrounds make school choices. Parents were also interviewed to gather qualitative data that might have been shadowed by the limitations of the survey. Two hundred and ninety-three surveys were sent to a random sample of parents practicing school choice in Anderson County, Clinton City, and Oneida Special School District. Parents were asked to rate twenty items on a Likert Scale and answer an optional open-ended question at the end of the survey. A response card asking for a voluntary interview was included in the packet. One hundred and twenty-nine surveys were returned (44%) for quantitative analysis. Seventy-three textual samples of qualitative data were collected from fifty-eight written survey responses and fifteen interviews. A One-Way Analysis of Variance was used to compare the means of each survey item with the educational level and income of the parents. Educational levels were reported in four intervals ranging from below high school to above college degree. Combined household income levels were reported in four intervals ranging from less than $20,000 to above $60,000 per year. Four statistically significant factors were found between variable education levels and three significant factors were found when analyzing the means of variable income levels. Qualitative results enriched the survey items and three themes emerged from the data that were not included in the original survey. The three emergent themes were tradition, discipline, and caliber of students. The results of this study support the need for each community school to recognize the culture and the values of the local community and to communicate with the parents to find out their expectations and levels of satisfaction with the current school program. If vouchers or tax credits are offered to parents, public schools must have exemplary programs in place that will keep the students enrolled in public schools.

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