Editing School voucher (section)

===Europe===
In most European countries, education for all primary and secondary schools is fully subsidized. In some countries (e.g., Belgium or France), parents are free to choose which school their child attends.

====France====
{{See also|Education in France}}
Parents can choose either a private school or a public school.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.expatica.com/fr/education/children-education/french-education-system-101147/|title=The French education system: a guide for expat parents|website=Expat Guide to France &#124; Expatica}}</ref>  Most private schools are under contract to the French government in which case the French government pays teachers' salaries and they are considered state employees.  Other costs at private schools are paid through fees which are usually low. Schools under contract follow the French national curriculum.  Some private schools are not under contract giving them more freedom to teach different curricula although the state still monitors educational standards. Teachers' salaries at private schools not 'under contract' are paid through fees that are therefore much higher than those under contract. About 20% of French schoolchildren attend private schools. Homeschooling is possible but restricted in France.<ref>{{cite web |title=Legal status and resources on homeschooling in France |work=Home School Legal Defense Association |url=https://hslda.org/post/france |accessdate=29 November 2022}}</ref> Indeed, on October 2, 2022, Emmanuel Macron reinforced secularism by allowing homeschooling only under specific circumstances, such as for individuals with disabilities, high-level athletes or artists, or those belonging to nomadic communities, as part of measures to combat the spread of [[obscurantism]] in some families.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-08-27 |title="La limitation drastique de l'école à la maison est un coup porté aux libertés" |url=https://www.lefigaro.fr/vox/societe/la-limitation-drastique-de-l-ecole-a-la-maison-est-un-coup-porte-aux-libertes-20210827 |access-date=2024-01-03 |website=Le Figaro |language=fr}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Sous-section 3 bis : Modalités de délivrance de l'autorisation d'instruction dans la famille (Articles R131-11 à D131-11-13) - Légifrance |url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/codes/section_lc/LEGITEXT000006071191/LEGISCTA000045175564/ |access-date=2024-01-03 |website=www.legifrance.gouv.fr}}</ref>

====Ireland====
{{See also|Education in the Republic of Ireland}}
Most schools in the Republic of Ireland are state-aided Catholic parish schools, established under diocesan patronage but with capital costs, teachers' salaries, and a fee per head paid to the school.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Irish Government Department of Education website |url=http://www.education.ie/home/home.jsp?maincat=&pcategory=17216&ecategory=20658&sectionpage=12251&language=EN&link=link001&page=1&doc=18626 |access-date=August 11, 2011 |publisher=Education.ie}}</ref> These are given to the school regardless of whether or not it requires its students to pay fees. (Although fee-paying schools are in the minority, there has been much criticism over the state aid they receive. Opponents claim that the aid gives them an unfair advantage.)

There is a recent trend towards multi-denominational schools established by parents and organised as limited companies without share capital. Parents and students are free to choose their own schools. If a school fails to attract students, it immediately loses its fees and eventually loses its teaching posts, and teachers are moved to other schools that are attracting students. The system is perceived to have achieved very successful outcomes for most Irish children.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Microsoft Word - Irish report 02_04_07.doc |url=http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/35/44/38574871.pdf |access-date=August 11, 2011}}</ref>

The 1995–97 "Rainbow Coalition" government, containing ministers from parties of the center-right and the left, introduced free third-level education to primary degree level. Critics charge that this has not increased the number of students from economically deprived backgrounds attending university. However, studies have shown that the removal of tuition fees at third level has increased the numbers of students overall and of students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. Since the economic crisis of 2008, there has been extensive debate regarding the possible reintroduction of third-level fees.

====Sweden====
{{Further|Education in Sweden}}
In [[Sweden]], a system of school vouchers (called ''skolpeng'') was introduced in 1992 at primary and secondary school level, enabling free choice among publicly run schools and privately run ''fristående skolor'' ("independent schools"). The voucher is paid with public funds from the local [[Municipalities of Sweden|municipality]] (''kommun'') directly to a school based solely on its number of students. Both public schools and independent schools are funded the same way. Independent schools can be run by not-for-profit groups as well as by for-profit companies, but may not charge top-up fees or select students other than on a first-come, first-served basis.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Blomqvist |first=Paula |date=April 2004 |title=The Choice Revolution: Privatization of Swedish Welfare Services in the 1990s |journal=Social Policy & Administration |volume=38 |issue=2 |pages=139–155 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-9515.2004.00382.x}}</ref> Over 10% of Swedish students were enrolled in independent schools in 2008 and the number is growing fast, leading the country to be viewed as a pioneer of the model.<ref name="swedishmodeleconomist">{{Cite news |date=June 12, 2008 |title=Making money from schools: The Swedish model |newspaper=The Economist |url=http://www.economist.com/business/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11535645}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |year=2008 |title=Made in Sweden: the new Tory education revolution |url=http://www.spectator.co.uk/the-magazine/features/526631/made-in-sweden-the-new-tory-education-revolution.thtml |url-status=dead |magazine=The Spectator |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090627082940/http://www.spectator.co.uk/the-magazine/features/526631/made-in-sweden-the-new-tory-education-revolution.thtml |archive-date=June 27, 2009 |df=mdy-all}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Baker |first=Mike |date=October 5, 2004 |title=Swedish parents enjoy school choice |publisher=BBC |location=London |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/3717744.stm |access-date=May 23, 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |year=2008 |title=Embracing private schools: Sweden lets companies use taxes for cost-efficient alternatives |work=Washington Times |url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2008/aug/11/embracing-private-schools/}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Munkhammar |first=Johnny |date=May 25, 2007 |title=How choice has transformed education in Sweden |work=The Telegraph |location=London |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1435386/How-choice-has-transformed-education-in-Sweden.html |access-date=May 23, 2010}}</ref>

[[Per Unckel]], governor of Stockholm and former Minister of Education, has promoted the system, saying "Education is so important that you can't just leave it to one producer, because we know from monopoly systems that they do not fulfill all wishes." The Swedish system has been recommended to [[Barack Obama]] by some commentators,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Lance T. Izumi |date=March 15, 2009 |title=Sweden's Choice: Why the Obama Administration Should Look to Europe for a School Voucher Program that Works |work=The New York Times |url=http://video.nytimes.com/video/2009/03/15/opinion/1194838660912/sweden-s-choice.html |access-date=May 23, 2010}}</ref> including the [[Pacific Research Institute]],<ref name="PRI" /> which has released a documentary called ''Not As Good As You Think: Myth of the Middle Class Schools'',<ref name="Notasgoodasyouthink">{{Cite web |title=Not As Good As You Think: Myth of the Middle Class Schools |url=http://rightnetwork.com/episodes/not-as-good-as-you-think-the-myth-of-the-middle-class-school-part-1 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223200028/http://rightnetwork.com/episodes/not-as-good-as-you-think-the-myth-of-the-middle-class-school-part-1 |archive-date=December 23, 2010 |access-date=September 16, 2012 |publisher=PRI}}</ref> a movie depicting positive benefits for middle class schools resulting from Sweden's voucher programs.<ref name="PRI">{{Cite web |title=Pacific Research Institute |url=http://liberty.pacificresearch.org.html}}{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

A 2004 study concluded that school results in public schools improved due to increased competition.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Sandström |first1=F. Mikael |last2=Bergström |first2=Fredrik |date=February 2005 |title=School vouchers in practice: competition will not hurt you |journal=Journal of Public Economics |volume=89 |issue=2–3 |pages=351–380 |doi=10.1016/j.jpubeco.2004.03.004}}</ref> However, Per Thulberg, director general of the [[Swedish National Agency for Education]], has said that the system "has not led to better results" and in the 2000s Sweden's ranking in the [[Programme for International Student Assessment|PISA]] league tables worsened.  Though Rachel Wolf, director of the New Schools Network, has suggested that Sweden's education standards had slipped for reasons other than as a result of independent schools.<ref name="guardian.co.uk">{{Cite news |last=Shepherd |first=Jessica |date=February 9, 2010 |title=Swedish-style 'free schools won't improve standards' |work=The Guardian |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/education/2010/feb/09/swedish-style-schools-wont-raise-standards |access-date=May 23, 2010}}</ref>

A 2015 study was able to show that "an increase in the share of independent school students improves average short‐ and long‐run outcomes, explained primarily by external effects (e.g., school competition)".<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Böhlmark |first1=Anders |last2=Lindahl |first2=Mikael |date=2015 |title=Independent Schools and Long-run Educational Outcomes: Evidence from Sweden's Large-scale Voucher Reform |url=https://www.cesifo-group.de/DocDL/cesifo1_wp3866.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427221234/http://www.cesifo-group.de/DocDL/cesifo1_wp3866.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 27, 2019 |journal=Economica |language=en |volume=82 |issue=327 |pages=508–551 |doi=10.1111/ecca.12130 |issn=1468-0335 |s2cid=17331276 }}</ref>