DOCUMENT RESUME

Parental decisionmaking is the keystone of any voucher model. This paper examines the parental decisionmaking process as it has unfolded in the educational voucher experiment in the Alum Rock school system near San Jose, California. The author assumed at the outset that parents cannot make intelligent choices between schooling alternatives if they lack knowledge about the alternatives or if they are unable to see the differences between the alternatives. The author fouad that the Alum Rock experience seeas to support the voucher model premise that parents vant to influence school decisions and that the use of vouchers will increase parental interest in school decisionmaking. The assumption that parents are competent to make schooling decisions received only mixed support from the results of the Alum Rock demonstration. At the onset of the demonstration, ignorance of voucher opportunities and policies was greatest among the segment of the population that was supposed to benefit the most from having a choice in schoolingthe educationally disadvantaged. But, as the voucher demonstration progressed, awareness of vouchers increased although non-English speaking Mexican-Americans continued to be the least aware of voucher opportunities. (Author/JF) r4 u i 0:PARTF5EAT OF HE AL TALUCATIcJNL vvELF AW