School choice and school segregation in the context of gentrifying Amsterdam

Abstract

Changes in the school-aged population due to gentrification can have paradoxical effects on school, choice dynamics and segregation. This article seeks to understand the changing school choice dynamics in gentrifying Amsterdam. Drawing on individual-level geocoded data, this article reveals the school choice of different groups of parents and how they are contingent on social class composition of their residential neighbourhood. It finds that different groups of parents enrol their children in different types of schools even if they live in the same neighbourhoods. This is in large part due to processes of disaffiliation and selective belonging from the part of ''white' middle classes who choose specific schools within and outside of their neighbourhood. Yet, other groups of parents also have their children in schools outside of the neighbourhood thereby contributing to high levels of segregation too. Nonetheless, the article concludes that gentrification paradoxically leads to both greater concentration of highly educated and more mix in other schools.

Opting out of neighbourhood schools: The role of local education markets in student mobility

“…These differences are not only vertical but also horizontal, as research on middle‐class strategies of school choice has demonstrated (Benson et al, 2015; Boterman, 2013; Lareau, 2014). Diverse strategies may alter the expected effects of open enrolment policies, which can increase school segregation by means of different mechanisms (Boterman, 2020; Makris, 2018; Zancajo & Bonal, 2020).…”

“…These differences are not only vertical but also horizontal, as research on middle-class strategies of school choice has demonstrated (Benson et al, 2015;Boterman, 2013;Lareau, 2014). Diverse strategies may alter the expected effects of open enrolment policies, which can increase school segregation by means of different mechanisms (Boterman, 2020;Makris, 2018;. This article analyses how the geography of educational opportunities, the socioeconomic background of students' families and the characteristics of their residential areas, impact on the travel-to-school distance in Barcelona.…”

Socio‐spatial strategies of school selection in a free parental choice context

“…Mixed schools, with diverse populations in terms of SES and ethnicity are found mainly in Amsterdam but even more so in Almere. This means that also the strategies parents pursue are highly contingent on the local educational landscape (Boterman, 2020;Bridge, 2006).…”

“…Studies on Amsterdam school choice reveal a similar anxiety and preoccupation with school choice as reported for other urban contexts. In Amsterdam, as in other multicultural urban contexts, class and race strongly intersect in school choice (Boterman, 2020). Much of the debate about school quality and (un)desirable schools is framed in terms of race and class, using terms such as "mixed," "white," and "black" schools.…”

“…Residential segregation of children is demonstrated to be a key factor in the relatively high levels of school segregation in Dutch cities (Boterman, 2018(Boterman, , 2019Ladd et al, 2009). Studies on primary school choice in Dutch cities demonstrate that especially white middle-class parents are found to use their freedom of school choice to avoid particular schools with high concentration of pupils with non-native backgrounds and select specific high-scoring primary schools, which are often outside of their own neighbourhood (Boterman, 2013(Boterman, , 2020Karsten et al, 2003). However less is known about the school choice strategies of non-native (non-white) and non-middleclass parents.…”