The power of social capital in school choice in a Chinese city

CITATION

Xiaoxin, W. (2013) The power of social capital in school choice in a Chinese city, Australian Journal of Education, 57(1), pp.48-59

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ABSTRACT
School choice in China is characterized by the payment of substantial amounts of additional
(‘‘choice’’) fees by parents to the preferred school, and by the use of cultural, social and
economic capital to obtain places in oversubscribed schools. This study examines the role of
social capital in current parent-initiated school choice in China. It finds that it is common for
parents to mobilize their social capital in the form of guanxi to acquire insider information, to
facilitate or gain exceptional entry into the preferred school and to reduce or waive the choice
fee. The paper also addresses the issue of educational inequality caused by such practice in the
school choice process.

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