Experience Abroad

The Cato Institute's Andrew Coulson points to a study of schools in Sweden since voucher implementation.

Summary
• For-profit schools benefit students from all socio-economic backgrounds, but they
produce the largest benefits for students from less privileged backgrounds.
• School competition in Sweden has increased levels of educational achievement.
• Free schools enjoy higher levels of parental satisfaction than government schools.
• Competition from free schools has improved conditions for teachers.
• The profit motive provides strong incentives for entrepreneurs to enter the schools market and to expand their businesses. Banning for-profit schools risks dramatically reducing the number of free schools that are created, thereby limiting the benefits of competition.