The debate over charter school effectiveness relies largely on neoclassical logic: individual parents or students express demand for a widening array of school types and then experience variable levels of organizational quality. We argue that market-like behavior is nested in segments of local organizational fields with different types of charter…

Explores educational reform at the turn of the century, documenting the influence of European educational thought and practice on the work of John Dewey and the influence of Dewey's ideas on education in Turkey, Russia, and the Netherlands. A context-specific approach to discussions of Progressivism is required. (SLD)

The changing role of the kindergarten in U.S. educational history illustrates the ways in which educational reforms are altered as they survive. From a reform aimed at altering the relationship between school and community, kindergarten has become essentially a way to get children ready for first grade. (SLD)

This essay explores the complex relationship between policy talk and institutional change in educational reform. Bursts of reform rhetoric must be distinguished from long-term trends in educational practice. The case study of a comprehensive reform effort helps illustrate why some kinds of reform last and others do not. (SLD)