Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/36944 
Year of Publication: 
2010
Series/Report no.: 
IZA Discussion Papers No. 4984
Publisher: 
Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), Bonn
Abstract: 
This paper analyzes whether information on high school quality published by a national newspaper affects school choice in the Netherlands. For this purpose, we use both school level and individual student level data. First, we study the causal effect of quality scores on the influx of new high school students using a longitudinal school dataset. We find that negative (positive) school quality scores decrease (increase) the number of students choosing a school after the year of publication. The positive effects are particularly large for the academic school track. An academic school track receiving the most positive score sees its inflow of students rise by 15 to 20 students. Second, we study individual school choice behaviour to address the relative importance of the quality scores, as well as potential differences in the quality response between socio-economic groups. Although the probability of attending a school is affected by its quality score, it is mainly driven by the travelling distance. Students are only willing to travel about 200 meters more in order to attend a well-performing rather than an average school. In contrast to equity concerns that are often raised, we cannot find differences in information responses between socio-economic groups.
Subjects: 
School quality
school choice
information
media
JEL: 
I20
D10
D83
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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