The economics of educational choice

Abstract

This paper places the recent debate over choice in education into an economic framework that considers both market choice and public choice mechanisms with respect to their efficiencies in producing social and private benefits. On the basis of the evidence, a market approach to education appears to be superior in terms of private benefits, while the public choice approach appears to be superior in terms of social benefits. It is difficult to find an advantage for either system in terms of overall efficiency. The market system appears to be more efficient in terms of meeting private tastes for education, and there is evidence of a slight superiority in terms of student achievement. However, the overall costs for sustaining the information, regulation, and other parts of the market system while providing, at least, minimum social protections look high to prohibitive relative to a public choice approach.

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