Description:

Genia Rachkovski (Northwestern): "Beyond Test Scores: Does Public Information on School Satisfaction and Violence Levels Affect Parental School Choice?"

Abstract: In 2012, a Supreme Court ruling mandated the public release of school-level test scores and non-academic school attributes in Israel. Leveraging this exogenous event, I investigate its impact on student school choice. Employing a discrete choice model, event study, and difference-in-difference approach, I find that in regions with multiple school options, parents increasingly opt for 'better' schools post-disclosure. Notably, this shift is primarily attributed to factors like violence and students' school satisfaction ratings, rather than test score information. Additionally, lower socio-economic status households exhibit greater responsiveness to non-test-related information. I also explore information sharing networks, as well as the connection to school value-added measures and implications for socio-economic integration and mobility.