Urban education: location and opportunity in the United States

Abstract

The study of location and schooling has become a vibrant area of research in recent years. This article identifies the current state in both theoretical and empirical analyses of schools and location. It begins with a description of housing markets and schools in the United States. It then provides an overview of the relevant theoretical arguments on both location and local public good provision. The two primary relevant models involve urban location theory and the Tiebout choice of governmental services. While each has strengths, neither provides a clear picture of the underlying individual choice or of the outcomes of policy interventions. Following this, the article explores several areas of the interaction of policy with locational decisions. Finally, it states that a different set of governmental interventions, those involving increased school choice, can be thought of as methods of reducing the linkage of location and schooling.