Abstract
One of the major concerns associated with school voucher proposals is that they will only benefit those who leave public schools in favor of private schools. The children left behind in public schools are expected to necessarily be made worse off by such policies. This paper provides evidence suggesting that children left behind in public schools will also benefit. The available evidence suggests that, after a voucher plan, voter support for public schools will rise enough to increase the human capital of public school students, despite the presence of negative peer group effects.
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This paper has benefited from the comments of Ed Buffie, James Heckman, Tom Philipson, Bob Sandy, and the participants at the IUPUI seminar, the Microeconomics Workshop at Indiana University, and the Public Policy Workshop at the University of Chicago. I would also like to thank Sharon Zehr Rangazas for her assistance.
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Rangazas, P. Vouchers and voting: An initial estimate based on the median voter model. Public Choice 82, 261–279 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01047697
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01047697