The issue of choice of schooling for their offspring is one which exercises many parents based in different parts of the world. For parents whose employment takes them away from their home country and whose children accompany them on such postings, the issue—while different from the experience of parents based solely within national systems—is no less important or complex. This paper investigates the issue of parental choice and priorities within the context of three international schools in Switzerland, where a study was undertaken to establish the basis on which parents had elected to send their children to one or other of the schools in question. Based on a survey model of questionnaires and follow-up interviews with parents, the research concludes that a major factor influencing parents is the perceived importance of an English-medium education. Interesting similarities in perceptions to emerge from the study are found amongst parents from the different schools and amongst parents of primary and secondary age children, while differences in perceived levels of importance clearly emerge between fathers and mothers, and between parents from different geographical backgrounds. The paper suggests some preliminary explanations for such differences, and highlights areas which could form the basis for further pieces of research in this growing and increasingly important context.
Parental Priorities in the Selection of International Schools
Reprints and Corporate Permissions
Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?
To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:
Academic Permissions
Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?
Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:
If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.
Related Research Data
Related research
People also read lists articles that other readers of this article have read.
Recommended articles lists articles that we recommend and is powered by our AI driven recommendation engine.
Cited by lists all citing articles based on Crossref citations.
Articles with the Crossref icon will open in a new tab.