Navigating School Choice: Decisions That Women of Color Make in Seeking Charter Schools For Their Children's Education in Texas

Abstract

The primary purpose of this study was to examine the reason(s) women of color were choosing charter schools for their children’s education. I collected qualitative data through face-to-face interviews with women of color who currently had a child or children in charter schools in Texas. I sought to examine the decisions that women of color, specifically Latinx and African American women, make as they choose charter schools for their children’s education. I use the term women rather than mothers in order to include women whose roles might be parent or guardian of school-age children in charter schools. This study was designed to (a) understand their reasons for choosing charter schools rather than public schools for their children’s education, (b) add to the discussion regarding their navigation of school choices, and (c) hear their voices as they described their decision-making processes. Existing literature provides very little research on the decisions that women of color make in choosing charter schools for their children’s education. Three themes emerged from analysis of the data: (a) Chooser’s Agency: “I did what I thought was best for my child”; (b) Data-Informed Decisions: “I looked up the school on Google”; and (c) The Hopeful Alternative: “I knew he wasn’t going back to that school.” These themes addressed the research question: What decisions influence the choices that women of color make with regard to choosing charter schools for their children’s education? These eight women, four African Americans and four Latinas, made their decisions based on available information and their own positionality. Regardless of whether the women were married or single, all made what they considered to be the best choice for the educational needs of their children. Their experiences show the importance of options in the process of obtaining educational opportunities where few opportunities were available as they navigated the school choice arena in seeking a charter school for their children’s education. Options matter, choice matters, and women’s voices matter.