Suggests that state-mandated testing will not restore the teaching of common culture in public schools, since most schools teach test-related technical skills rather than a deep and shared understanding of literature, history, mathematics, science, and foreign language. Certain choice schools, unfettered by state testing requirements, may be the…

The author contends that a voucher system including private schools would allow greater access to quality education and broaden curricular options while reducing the costs of central school administration and ultimately of welfare and crime. (DM)

A conversation with Larry Cuban, Professor Emeritus of Education at Stanford University, about two contradictory trends in education: customization and standardization and their effect on the public schools' responsibilities to provide both individual and social benefits. (PKP)

When features of the "excellence" and "choice" movements in education are compared, these two orientations appear dissimilar. This article shows how the two can be united by broadening the definition of excellence so that all schools become schools of choice. Choice, then, becomes an ingredient in the pursuit of excellence. (VM)

Identifies three trends that restrain the ability of public school to transmit a common culture: The high concentration of racial and ethnic minorities in urban schools, the widespread teaching of multiculturalism, and legal decisions that have undermined the authority of principals and teachers. Private choice schools may counter these trends.…

Looks at different waves of school reform beginning with Sputnik in the 1950s. Examines influences in today's reform, including industrial influences and school choice. Argues that the origins and outcomes of school reform have more to do with what is happening outside the school than within it, and that schools must think beyond objective indices…

Focuses on the application of a targeted and regulated voucher system to the problems of racial segregation. Suggests that under a regulated voucher system, minorities (Chapter 1 students, in particular) have a better chance of obtaining both the racial balance and the school characteristics they desire. (Author/GC)

This document presents findings on the impact of privatization to date at a meeting at the Ford Foundation co hosted by the William Penn Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, and Ford. Increasingly, the private sector (both for-profit and non-profit) is providing resources and alternative delivery models for urban public schools. Beyond…

Based on findings of school-choice efforts in the Boulder Valley School District in Colorado, concludes that this reform experiment should be abandoned, because of controversy involving competition for district resources, differential perceptions of parent satisfaction, and inequitable opportunities for parents to exercise school-choice options.…

Examines the assumptions that educational vouchers will mean less state control over education, more choice for parents, and education that serves the child's best interest. The assertion that a voucher system will lead to more efficient and effective schools is examined in the light of five educational goals. (CMG)

Mid-Continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL) has identified a research agenda that connects the challenges that rural schools face in implementing No Child Left Behind (NCLB) provisions. The rural education research agenda crafted by McREL includes nine priority topics: (1) Opportunity to learn; (2) School size and student…

Research on educational choice suggests that students do better in schools that their families choose, that this is especially true for lower income and disadvantaged students, and that permitting choice does not adversely affect racial balance but may actually promote racially balanced schools. (Author/GC)

Poor students and parents in the East Harlem schools of New York City's Community District 4 should have the same opportunity to obtain the benefits of school choice available to the wealthy, who can afford private and parochial schools. Parental choice can provide the catalyst for educational reform by introducing a market mechanism to the public…

As public schools are failing inner-city children, school choice offers a promising solution. This paper presents research that shows how school choice (public, private, or parochial) has a positive effect on minority, inner city children, noting that school choice is the only reform mechanism that would offer schools immediate and measurable…

Discusses the history of schools of choice and their place within the current school reform efforts and Excellence Movement. Asserts that choice is an effective strategy for holding schools accountable for improving conditions for teachers and students and for paving the way for innovation. (CR)