Discusses the development of charter schools in the United States over the past decade, examining the history of the charter school movement, the rapid rise in charter school enrollment (which indicates many parents believe they are working better than the schools they are leaving), and the lack of definitive research on the effectiveness of…

This consumer guide, for the first time ever, provides comparative ratings on the effectiveness and quality of seven widely adopted Education Service Providers (ESPs)--nonprofit or for-profit organizations that contract with new or existing public, charter, or private schools and/or school districts to provide comprehensive services. This report…

"School Choice: The Findings" is the most comprehensive and up-?to-?date survey available, summarizing the research on charter schools, vouchers, and public versus private school effectiveness, from one of the country's most distinguished education scholars. The focus is on rigorous studies--those using randomized control groups (as in…

Alberta parents enjoy a range of choices for their children's education, including the option of home education. Alberta's "School Act" and its funding guidelines for education recognize the central role of parents in the education of their children. No matter what your decision about educational programming, your ongoing involvement…

The modern character education movement emerged in the 1980s as a consequence of growing parental and public concern for moral drift, or what sociologist James Davison Hunter referred to as "the death of character." This public anomie was captured in these words from Sanford McDonnell, chairman emeritus of McDonnell Douglas and chair of…

This article relates the story of Joy Warner, founder and director of Children's Community School (CCS) in Huntersville, North Carolina. Distressed to learn that her five-year-old would have to change classes in public school, and unhappy with the uninspired teaching she witnessed in private schools, Warner decided to open her own school. A major…

A Friedman Foundation report attempts to find empirical support for the contention that competition from private schools, through voucher programs, improves the effectiveness of public schools. In the first year of Ohio's new EdChoice voucher program, the report claims to have found substantial academic gains at public schools exposed to the…

The National Household Education Surveys Program (NHES) provides a comprehensive set of information that may be used to estimate the use of school choice in the United States. In this country, school choice is primarily comprised of programs that allow students to attend any public school within or outside of their local school district, a magnet…

As measures of developed verbal and mathematical abilities that are important for success in college, SAT scores are useful in making decisions about individual students and assessing their academic preparation. Because of the increasing public interest in educational accountability, aggregate test data continue to be widely publicized and…

The District of Columbia School Choice Incentive Act of 2003 was passed by Congress in January 2004. The Act provided funds for District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) improvement activities and charter school facility acquisitions. Most notably, the statute established what is now called the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program?the first federal…

Includes "Agricultural Education & School-to-Work" (Larson, Cox); Agricultural Opportunities with Home Schoolers" (Frick, Brennan); "Private Schools and Agricultural Education in North Carolina" (Forrest); "Career Pathways" (Sigar, Thompson); "Perkins and Plows" (Lovejoy); "Charter Schools" (Knight, Armstrong); "Telling the College Tech. Prep.…

Washington is a safe distance from the powerful winds that have wreaked havoc on the Gulf Coast, but a political storm continued to brew in the capital over President Bush's plan to help pay the costs of private school tuition for students displaced by Hurricane Katrina. As voucher opponents decried the president's plan, Louisiana's two U.S.…

In the last half-decade Florida has been in tune with, or on the cutting edge of, several national trends in education. Florida has a comprehensive testing program, and has created a range of options for students who seem to be poorly served by traditional public schools. Three Florida programs provide scholarships or vouchers to children from…

Discusses effect of competition from charter schools and voucher programs on students who remain in public schools; focuses on Milwaukee (effect of vouchers), Arizona (charter schools) and Michigan (charter schools). By comparing test results between schools affected by competition and those not affected, argues competition improves public…

Considers competition among schools in the UK state education system in three ways: as self-governing, hierarchical, or nonhierarchical competition spaces. The diverse schools in the marketplace compete unequally. Denominational and selective schools do not compete for local students. Nondenominational and nonselective grant-maintained schools top…