Erosion of the school catchment system as local policy: The case of Poznań, Poland

Authors:

• Artur Bajerski

Abstract

This article presents a case study of the operation of lower secondary schools in Poznań (the fifth largest city in Poland). It analyzes the determinants and consequences of a liberal approach to the school catchment system, which leads to the system’s erosion. A liberal approach to the school catchment system, which makes the school choice more flexible, is presented to residents by local authorities as a way to improve the educational offering and raise teaching standards. However, it is also a tool used by the local authorities to reorganize the school network (through the policy of closing some schools). The liberalization of school recruitment principles indirectly widens social inequalities in the access to quality education, since an active school choice by students and parents has become a significant factor in the diversification of the results of school-leaving exams in lower-secondary schools.