Criticizes the educational goals of the conservative reform movement of the 1980s. Addresses the implications of shifting curricular decision making from teachers to state legislators and local administrators. Examines some alternatives that give poorer students access to new technologies and a broader skills base and that contribute to community…

Discusses the effect of deficit thinking on the academic achievement of minority and low income students. Highlights five ways that high-stakes accountability helped displace deficit thinking of school superintendents in Texas school districts. Data come from a multiyear study that demonstrated sustained, substantially improved academic…

Suggests that the most useful discussion of accountability, testing, and educational equity should occur at the conceptual level rather than the level of conflicting individual studies. Argues that statistical debates avoid larger foundational questions about the goals of schooling in our society and emphasizes the need for research on effective…

Studies of comprehensive school reform suggest that such efforts often fail because of educators' unwillingness to examine the root causes of underachievement and of failure among students from low-income and racially or ethnically diverse backgrounds and because of their tendency to locate the problem within students, families, and communities.…

Presents an overview of several countries and which factors produce difficulties in the education of minorities. Focuses on Australia, Canada, England, West Germany, India, Israel, Japan, and Malaysia. Suggests factors such as race, color, caste, religion, nationality, immigrant status, and worldview for consideration by policymakers. (SA)

Examines effects of several federal categorical programs and civil rights mandates on schools/school districts. Concluded that federal and state policies for special populations have (1) improved and expanded services for target students, and (2) increased the structural complexity of schools and districts. The study also found that overtime costs…

Asserts that closing the racial achievement gap does not necessarily require more competition and choice, but does require that educational objectives are clearly defined, practices adequately aligned, and evaluations based on long-term effectiveness. Highlights the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), discussing sociological and historical…

Uses critical race theory to critique three articles on accountability, testing, and academics in schools with minority group and low-income students, raising questions about the viability of interest convergence theory in arguing that accountability promotes equity and pointing out that gender issues remain unanswered in debates focused on race…

The educational funding system in Massachusetts has become less equitable than before, since the passage of Proposition Two and a Half. A decision-making process driven by zero-sum economics, rather than educational needs, is particularly harmful to urban youth; failure to educate every young American threatens the nation's social and economic…

In Los Angeles, where Anglos are a relatively small and declining minority, where Hispanics are becoming the majority, and where projections show more Black than Anglo students within a few years, desegregation is only feasible within a metropolitan context. (CMG)

Proposes a way to streamline federal categorical program management while maintaining equity and equality. The proposal has three components: (1) incentives to state governments to adopt programs that meet federal objectives; (2) schoolwide coordination of programs; and (3) waivers from categorical program requirements under certain conditions.…

Discusses school choice policy itself, the debate between proponents and opponents, and the range of possible school choice programs. Addresses the roles of federal and state governments, the courts, and school administrators in school choice plans. Presents recommendations for achieving an educational environment that engages the minds of all…

Argues that the following steps will effectuate educational reform: (1) provision of more latitude and flexibility in school governance; (2) business commitment to using and upgrading the inner-city workforce; (3) consumer understanding of rights and options available within public education; and (4) government understanding of the danger of…

Discusses the theme of the special issue, "Excellence and Equity in Education: Models for Success." Emphasizes the need for concern with both educational quality and its prerequisite, equal educational opportunity, and that strategies exist to improve the quality of instruction for minority students. (FMW)

Identifies some of the salient characteristics of American private schools. Examines possible effects that the status composition of the student body might have in influencing the educational opportunity structure. Raises questions about the educational and social equity of supporting private schools financially through school choice mechanisms…