Offering contributions from international leaders in the field, this volume builds on empirically informed meta-analyses to foreground relationship-based aspects of parental involvement in children's education and learning. Chapters explore how factors including parent-child communication, cultural and parental expectations, as well as…

"The ABCs of School Choice" is a comprehensive, data-rich guide to every private school choice program in America. The 2016 edition of "The ABCs of School Choice" is the best yet, not just because of the new look and the fantastic growth in the number of school choice programs, but also because it is now paired with a…

The "Report on the Condition of Education" is a congressionally mandated annual report from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). Using the most recent data available (at the time this report was written) from NCES and other sources, the report contains key indicators on the condition of education in the United States at…

In comparing one public school to another, discussions frequently include talk concerning the socio economics of a school or district, which then leads to talk about the advantages that one socioeconomic setting has over another. Educators tend to agree that low academic achievement frequently associated with a low socioeconomic status is a…

Since the early 1990s when the nation's first charter school was opened in Minneapolis, the scope and availability of school-based options to parents has steadily expanded. No longer can public education be characterized as a monopoly. Sponsored by the National Center on School Choice (NCSC), this handbook makes readily available the most rigorous…

This paper examines school choice reforms in one key state, within the broader context of public education and privatization. Choice advocates describe the public nature of charter schools in terms of access, funding, choice, and effects. Critics see charter schools as precursors to more market-based reforms such as vouchers. In reviewing the…

This study explores how and why parents choose to enroll their children in certain schools, and what criteria they apply in making an enrollment decision. Fourteen families with 10 typical and 6 special children were interviewed in depth about their experiences with preschool and school enrollment and their expectations regarding their children's…

Discusses new research directions for school finance that should accompany a national policy shift toward improving education quality. Traces the evolution of school finance, outlines school finance topics related to recently enacted state education reforms, and projects future education policy isues and related financial research problems.…

Examines the reasons why one-third of the teachers in a large urban school district rated the quality of their school highly but did not want their own children to attend the school where they taught. Finds the following explanations: (1) overall school quality; (2) disciplinary consistency; and (3) racial attitudes. Discusses policy implications.…

Reflecting a variety of intellectual and disciplinary orientations, this volume examines major changes in educational development and reform and considers how such changes have been implemented in the past. The material addresses questions of governance, equity and multiculturalism, curriculum standards, school choice. The book has four parts.…

This paper presents selected results of some initial attempts to describe and understand the home school phenomenon. Two types of research activities investigating the nature of family curricula are reviewed: (1) informal descriptions of home schools and their participants' reflections as already published, and (2) several case studies of families…

This document offers a detailed description of the dynamics involved in the choice of an independent neighborhood school. These primarily urban schools are an expression of cultural power and identity among minority groups who wish to ensure access to opportunities for academic achievement for their children and also to control the content and…

This Third Edition of the 1985 report, "Dialogue for Change," discusses options and examples of educational choice and teacher empowerment and summarizes developments between 1985 and 1987. The following key options are discussed in Chapter 1, "Proposed Options for Change": (1) magnet schools; (2) open enrollment; (3) purchase…

This report presents a proposal to expand parental choice in Michigan education by amending the Michigan Constitution and establishing a Universal Tuition Tax Credit (UTTC). Section 1 reviews why parental choice is the most important systemic education reform and evaluates various ways to expand it. Section 2 examines Michigan's constitutional…

This study compared 26 students identified as gifted and talented who transferred to nonresident schools through Minnesota's Open Enrollment program with 60 transfer students not so identified. Academic and educational concerns were the main reasons gifted students chose to transfer. Few members of minority groups chose to transfer. Parental…