Factors influencing parental school choice

Globalization and neoliberal policies require reforms to meet the demands of modern education systems. The free parental choice of school is a measure of these policies and means that parents can choose the school their children wish to attend regardless of the spatial distribution provided by law. As a neoliberal ideology, it is considered to connect the field of education with the labor market. The present quantitative research investigates the criteria by which parents choose their children"s primary school and whether the selection criteria are related to the educational and financial level of the parents. Fifty (50) parents responded to the survey through convenient sampling and answered the 24 questions in a questionnaire that was designed and distributed electronically. The results showed that the distance of the school from the home of the parent/grandparents and the good reputation/quality of the school unit are the two main criteria of parental choice of the school. The correlation between the two main selection criteria and the financial and educational level of the parents was not statistically significant.