school choice

noun

US : a program or policy in which students are given the choice to use public funds to attend a school other than their district's public school (as at a charter school, private school, home school, or at a public school in a different district)

Voucher plans were adopted largely as a last resort, an effort to guarantee a semblance of school choice for low-income minority students in failing inner-city schools.

—Jeffrey Rosen

To be sure, even their most enthusiastic defenders acknowledge that many public schools, especially in big cities are riven with serious problems. The debate over "school choice" and tax vouchers for private schools illustrates the widespread discontent with public schools.

—Dirk Johnson

Examples of school choice in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Florida Education Association, the state’s largest teacher union, recently blamed a host of factors for last month’s disappointing NAEP results, among them underinvestment in public education and school choice policies. —Thibaut Delloue, Orlando Sentinel, 1 Mar. 2025

Several school choice bills were introduced this session, including Senate Bill 1025, which died on the Senate floor. —Carolyn Komatsoulis, Idaho Statesman, 27 Feb. 2025

Florida and Arizona have the largest school choice programs and among the best high school football programs in the country. —Matt Robison, Newsweek, 25 Feb. 2025

Texas has debated the issue of universal school choice, which provides education options to parents of all income groups, for almost a decade. —John Fund, National Review, 21 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1988, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for school choice

• rejoice
• voice