In Australian educational policy debate, advocacy of choice and diversity has come to be linked to support for educational markets and therefore with educational reform and restructuring associated with "economic rationalism." This paper argues that choice and diversity are better conceived within a framework of democratic educational…

This book is designed to develop a general conceptualization of equality of educational opportunity and to use it to characterize the problems confronting public education in the United States. It is argued that educational opportunities and educational results cannot be disentangled. After an overview in chapter 1, chapter 2, "A Radical…

Parents have the legal right to send their children to private schools. This paper presents findings of a survey that compared the opinions of sitting school board presidents (n=1,500) with those of Chamber of Commerce executives (n=1,300) across the United States. The survey asked each group about their attitudes toward charter schools,…

This paper presents the contents of an address given by Richard W. Riley, United States Secretary of Education, on February 28, 1996, in St. Louis, Missouri, on the state of American education. Policymakers are divided on the future of public education; some want to cut or abolish it, others seek to rebuild and expand it. The paper describes…

This book presents concerns and raises questions about the choice programs being proposed and implemented around the United States. It argues that poorly conceived, hastily enacted choice programs may do more harm than good. The demand for educational choice may result in lost opportunities for students (some groups more than others), weakened…

Twenty-four questions regarding school choice concerns are answered in this document, which advocates school choice in public schools for Massachusetts. The following issues are included: the rationale for school choice; drawbacks to currently available choice options; components of an effective choice plan; the definition and maintenance of…

This paper describes a study that examined the demand for tutoring within a context of heightened credential competition and a growing private-education sector consisting of private schools, charter schools, homeschoolers, and a burgeoning entrepreneurial education industry. The number of private-tutoring businesses is rapidly growing in Canada,…

This paper discusses how trends in school racial desegregation suggest a move back toward segregation. Courts are more willing now to attribute these patterns of racial segregation to demographic changes in residential housing markets rather than to past vestiges of the segregated system as they had done in the past. School officials and community…

Since 1873, Maine has financed the private school education of thousands of K-12 students. This lets parents in towns without traditional public schools choose from a list of approved private and public schools, enroll their children, and have the town pay the tuition up to an authorized amount. The town receives full or partial reimbursement from…

This paper reviews a cross-section of research on implementing Education for All, a goal and timeline established by the United Nations for educating all children. It examines how education policies in developing countries affect educational conditions and outcomes, comparing the merits of alternative education policies using five criteria:…

Research findings in England suggest that increased competition among schools, if combined with performance management, may enhance schools' efficiency. But, to prevent greater inequality in access to good quality state education, care must be taken with the regulations governing school admissions and the incentives for schools to admit and retain…

Explores ways in which public schools, which are supposed to be universally accessible moral communities, engage in patterns of systematic exclusion. Presents three case studies of secondary schools in which issues of exclusion of groups of students have arisen concerning ideologies of merit, choice, and tradition. (JS)

Describes the efforts of teachers and parents to open a charter school in Denver, which is being vigorously blocked by the school board. Discusses the pros (offer nontraditional teaching methods and institutional autonomy) and cons (drain public funds from poor schools) of charter schools. (LMI)

Five articles comment on Chubb and Terry M. Moe's book "Politics, Markets, and America's Schools": (1) Choice in Education: Examining the Evidence on Equity; (2) Politics, Markets, and America's Schools: A Review; (3) Political Pollyannas; (4) Degrees of Imperfection: A Note from a Political Pollyanna; and (5) Thoughts on Choice. (SM)

Discusses the various definitions of home education and how the term can give rise to misinterpretations. Covers recent changes to legislation and policy relating to home education in some European countries, such as France and Ireland. Argues that governments should conduct well reasoned, objective research before considering measures to limit…