Abstract: This provocative book asks a simple question: since we know that middle class schools tend to work best, why not give every child in America the opportunity to attend a public school in which the majority of students come from middle class households? Economically integrated schools, the author argues, will do far more to promote achievement and equal opportunity than vouchers, standards, class size reduction, or any of the other leading education proposals on the left and right that seek to make "separate but equal" schools work. Building on two recent education trends --the decline in racial desegregation as a legal tool and the movement toward greater public school choice --All Together Now provides a blueprint for creating schools that educate children from various backgrounds under one roof. Concurring with the concerns of voucher proponents about the unfairness of trapping poor kids in failing schools, the book provides a practical, viable, and legally sound plan for promoting economic and racial integration among public schools.

Abstract: This provocative book asks a simple question: since we know that middle class schools tend to work best, why not give every child in America the opportunity to attend a public school in which the majority of students come from middle class households? Economically integrated schools, the author argues, will do far more to promote achievement and equal opportunity than vouchers, standards, class size reduction, or any of the other leading education proposals on the left and right that seek to make "separate but equal" schools work. Building on two recent education trends --the decline in racial desegregation as a legal tool and the movement toward greater public school choice --All Together Now provides a blueprint for creating schools that educate children from various backgrounds under one roof. Concurring with the concerns of voucher proponents about the unfairness of trapping poor kids in failing schools, the book provides a practical, viable, and legally sound plan for promoting economic and racial integration among public schools.

Abstract: Moe's new book is not an argument for or against vouchers; it is an analysis of public opinion on vouchers that is likely to be very influential in shaping the movement's future. Moe has written a nuanced and thoughtful treatise that goes beneath the notoriously unreliable single-shot question favored by the media: Do you favor or oppose school vouchers? -Richard D. Kahlenberg in The Nation "In a brilliant, definitive analysis of the subject, Terry Moe tells us who does --and does not --like vouchers as well as who says they will use them, if the opportunity arises. He illuminates not only the school choice debate but the nature of public opinion more generally." -Paul E. Peterson, Harvard University "No book tells us more about how Americans evaluate schools...This book will be the starting point for anyone interested in any school reform, not just vouchers. A model analysis of public opinion on a public policy." --Samuel Popkin, University of California-San Diego "Finally, a book on school vouchers that explores what ordinary Americans want and believe when thoughtfully engaged on the issue." --Stephen D. Sugarman, University of California

Abstract: Using panel data from a unique survey of public primary schools in Uganda we assess the degree of leakage of public funds in education. The survey data reveal that on average, during the period 1991‐5, schools received only 13 percent of what the central government contributed to the schools’ non-wage expenditures. The bulk of the allocated spending was either used by public officials for purposes unrelated to education or captured for private gain (leakage). Moreover we find that resource flows and leakages are endogenous to school characteristics. Rather than being passive recipients of flows from government, schools use their bargaining power vis-a-vis other parts of government to secure greater shares of funding. Resources are therefore not necessarily allocated according to the rules underlying government budget decisions, with potential equity and efficiency implications.

Abstract: We present here a summary of the findings of what so far is the largest study of school choice in publicly funded schools, and the first analysis of changes over time in the characteristics and performance of students in an entire national school system (that of England and Wales). Our finding, in contradiction to some smaller studies reported previously, is that the socio-economic stratification of school students declined after the introduction of choice policies. We also show that standards in publicly funded schools rose relative to those of private schools over the same period. The extent to which these changes can be attributed to the impact of market forces in education is the subject of our discussion.

Abstract: This paper examines various claims made by charter-school advocates that charter schools are publicly funded, open to all, are chartered by public entities, and thus are a form of public schooling. It addresses this subject by comparing the rhetoric of Michigan's charter-school reformers with that of the common-school reformers of the 19th century, particularly Horace Mann. The analysis finds conflicting definitions of what constitutes public schooling. Whereas both types of reform support tax-funded schools and open access, the common-school reformers emphasized political-democratic forms of control. Charter-school advocates actively challenge such control and claim that market mechanisms of consumer choice and competition among providers are the primary means of authority. Furthermore, proponents of charter schools seek to "redefine" popular conceptions of what constitutes public and private education. In doing so, they frame education principally as a consumer good, and thus effect a privatization of the purpose of public education that contrasts with the common-school reformers' stated concern for democracy and the public good. The paper suggests that the rhetoric of charter-school advocates promotes depublicization and a redefinition of the "public" in education away from that of an institution of and for the public good. (Contains approximately 120 references.) (RJM) Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. Redefining "Public" Education: Charter Schools, Common Schools, and the Rhetoric of Reform

Abstract: While not providing a social class analysis of market competition this paper aims to build upon such work by introducing other factors that appear to be present in the education market place. In this paper market competition is considered along two broad dimensions. The first examines educational markets as spatial phenomenon. In the second an empirical study of competition and markets in action is undertaken based on one year's transfer of pupils to secondary schools across six LEAs, each with different geographies. The study proposes three key ways in which competition between schools can be classified. It also suggests that the education market place is, generally, hierarchical, and that the position of schools within these hierarchies is largely associated with their relative examination performances. The paper concludes by suggesting that the concept and the subsequent identification of the ‘local’ markets is necessary before addressing issues such as the impact on school rolls and potential social segregation of intakes.

Abstract: Introduction * Chapter 1: Studying Privatization in Education Henry M. Levin * Introduction * Setting the Agenda * Chapter 2: Educational Vouchers and The Media Lee D. Mitgang and Christopher V. Connell * The Stakes and The Stakeholders * The Medias Challenges * What Can Be Done? Implementation Issues * Chapter 3: The Legal Status of Privatization and Vouchers in Education Frank R. Kemerer * Privatization Within the Public Sector * Vouchers, Tax Deductions, and Tax Credits * Stakeholders and The Research Agenda * Summary * Chapter 4: Information and Choice in Educational Privatization Mark Schneider * Parents as Stakeholders: Choice at the Individual Level * The Benefits and Costs of Gathering Information about Public Goods * Not Everyone Needs to Be Informed: The Concept of the Marginal Consumer * The Role of Other Stakeholders in the Provision of Information * The Role of Other Levels of Government and Business as Stakeholders * Increasing Information Levels * Constructing an Internet Site for Washington, DC Schools * Stratification in the Use of Information * Setting an Agenda for Schools and Information Preschools and Higher Education * Chapter 5: Preschools and Privatization Ellen Magenheim * Introduction * Who Are the Stakeholders with an Interest in This Issue and What Are Their Interests and Concerns? * What Types of Studies Might Address These Concerns? * Conclusions * Chapter 6: Privatization in Higher Education Arthur Levine * The Major Actors * The Implications for Higher Education * Research Questions International Dimensions * Chapter 7: Privatization Through Vouchers in Developing Countries: The Cases of Chile and Colombia Martin Carnoy and Patrick J. McEwan * Introduction * Vouchers and Reform in Chile, 1980-1996 * Lessons from the Chilean Voucher Plan * Targeted Vouchers in Colombia * Lessons from the Colombian Voucher Plan * Conclusions * Chapter 8: Privatization in Industrialized Countries Geoffrey Walford * Introduction * Privatization in England and Wales * Privatization Measures in the 1990s * Privatization Under Labour? * The Dutch Case * Setting the Research Agenda Charter Schools * Chapter 9: Assessing the Growth and Potential of Charter Schools Pearl Rock Kane and Christopher J. Lauricella * Charter Schools: Early History * The Charter School Concept * From Concept to Reality * Factors That Inhibit or Stimulate Charter School Growth * Charter School Demographics * Charter Schools as a Potential Reform * Chapter 10: Privatization and Charter School Reform: The Rich Get Richer Amy Stuart Wells and Janelle Scott * The Multiple Meanings of Charter School Reform and Privatization * The Intersection of Charter School Reform and Privatization * Implications and Further Research * Conclusion Perspectives of Stakeholders * Chapters 11: Vouchers, Privatization, and The Poor Gary Natriello * Framing the Issue * Major Stakeholders * Stakeholder Interests * Studies to Address the Concerns of Stakeholders * Existing Research * Final Thoughts * Chapter 12: Teachers and Privatization Caroline Hodges Persell * Who Are the Stakeholders and What are Their Concerns? * Previous Work on Privatization * Needed Research Evaluation Designs * Chapter 13: Criteria for Evaluating School Voucher Studies David E. Myers * Overview and Policy Context * Framing the Policy Question * Criteria for Evaluating School Voucher Studies * Summary of Criteria and Illustrative Report Card * Chapter 14: Designing Education Voucher Experiments: Recommendations For Researchers, Funders, and Users Fred Doolittle and Wendy Connors * Introduction * Key Policy-Related Questions * Key Research Methodology Questions * Conclusion

Abstract: The movement of public services into direct competition with their private enterprise counterparts is a common feature of public sector policy throughout the developed world. The publicly funded provision of school education has not been exempt from this trend. The creation of a competitive climate is placing public school leaders and teachers under pressure to improve performance in an environment where parents-as-consumers choose the schools to which they send their children. Drawing on data from two recent studies involving principals, a description is given of some of the difficult ethical situations encountered in schools and the professional values that are put under stress as a result of the new competitive climate. Some implications are outlined for the design of professional development programmes for school principals and teachers.

Abstract: Educational performance tables have become a feature of the educational landscape in a number of countries in the 1990s. These tables have been published on the assumption that they will help to inform parental and pupil choice, school improvement and will make schools more accountable. This article explores the uses and (negative) side-effects of the publication of performance tables in two European countries. It shows the strengths and weaknesses of the current practices in England and France, reviews the current practices critically and gives some recommendations for improvement.

Abstract: The geography of education remains an under-researched area, particularly in light of major transformations in education provision over the last two decades. This paper reaffirms the position of a geographical approach to studying the education system by focussing upon the differential impact of two major features of national policy reforms on secondary school admissions in England: the desire to enhance choice and diversity in the provision of schooling.

Abstract: In this article, we present findings about the implementation of single gender public schooling in California—a movement that signifies a growing interest in school choice and private sector solutions to public education problems. We analyze qualitative data gathered in a study of 12 single gender academies (6 boys; 6 girls). As well-meaning educators responded to California’s single gender academies legislation, they designed schools and used resources to address the pressing needs of students in each community, such as low achievement, poverty, or violence, rather than to address gender bias. The impetus for single gender schooling in each context affected the organization, curriculum, and pedagogy in each academy, as did educators’ ideologies about gender. In the end, the politics surrounding the legislation, the resource interests of district and school administrators, and the lack of institutional support for this gender-based reform coalesced to structure the demise of most of the single gender academies. We consider the implications of these findings for the viability of single gender schooling as a public school option.

Abstract: In England a restructured school system has been functioning throughout the 1990s. An integral aspect of this restructuring is the creation of a more competitive public-market school system aimed at enhancing parental opportunities for choice amongst publicly-funded schools. What has been the experience of the restructured system by one particular group of parents with specific needs and preferences, namely parents of students with special educational needs (SEN)? This article is intended to provide empirically-based insights into the preferences, perceptions and responses of such parents. It draws on analyses of quantitative and qualitative data generated by a large-scale, more general research study on school choice, funded by the UK Economic and Social Research Council (ref. no. R000234079). The findings reveal the depth and range of problems and difficulties encountered by parents of SEN students as they attempt to exercise choice in a more competitive public-market environment.

Abstract: All political issues are driven by a combination of ideology and political calculation, Ms. Kennedy contends. Ultimately, Americans will have to decide whether an embrace of vouchers will further or erode the public interest - a determination that depends on our collective understanding of where our public interest lies and of the role we see for government. ARGUMENTS about the education of the young are at least as old as Socrates. However, it is fair to suggest that the voucher debate that has erupted over the past few years is qualitatively different from many that preceded it. Rather than arguing about whether public schools are deficient and, if so, in what respects, and rather than debating the merits of one "reform" over another, opponents now take sides over whether America should continue to support a system of free, publicly controlled schools or whether government's educational role should be reduced to dispensing vouchers to families that enable them to "buy" educational services in the marketplace. It is a classic political confrontation, engaging partisan strategies and implicating political ideologies. Politicians often refer to political campaigns as part "ground war" and part "air war." The ground war is the execution of political strategy, the coalition building and grassroots organizing, the polling and get- out-the-vote efforts. The air war - so named because it occurs primarily via ads on the electronic media - is the sum of the political messages, ideologies, and positions expressed in paid ads and other media coverage and in political oratory. Just as studying the air war alone will yield a misleading picture of a political campaign, focusing only on the publicly stated positions of voucher proponents and opponents will not adequately reflect the political realities involved. Identifying the participants and agendas of the ground war is a necessary framework for understanding the fundamental differences in political philosophy that constitute the air war. The Ground War: Partisans, Patronage, and the Constitution The politics of liberal democracies is the politics of faction, as Madison clearly understood. Individuals have economic interests, social goals, and political and religious beliefs that are affected by public policies and so motivate political behavior. In order to appreciate the dynamics of the voucher ground war, it helps to identify some of the most prominent stakeholders and the interests they seek to advance, because, as John Witte has noted, "The battle over vouchers may have more to do with money and with the allocation of power than with education."1 Pro-voucher interest groups include: Pro-market libertarians. These are the ideological proponents of vouchers, who genuinely believe that the state should have no control over education. They dismiss the need to transmit collective values, believing that the mission of schools is to prepare autonomous individuals to compete in the marketplace. Many pro-market libertarians see public schools as part of a New Deal expansive approach to government that they despise. Business. Chambers of commerce and groups like CEO America are ideologically allied with pro-market libertarians. In general, they distrust government bureaucracies and believe that competition will always produce the best goods and services at the lowest price. Businesses also need well-trained workers, and to the extent that the public schools are not providing those workers, they want to identify and correct the problem. Finally, some businesses see market opportunities if vouchers become a reality. In Ohio, economic opportunism of this sort was evidently a key element in the adoption of both the voucher program and charter school legislation.2 The Christian Right. The cultural conservatives of the Christian Right make up one of the largest and most active blocs working for vouchers. Groups such as the Christian Coalition and Citizens for Excellence in Education (CEE) might at first blush seem very strange bedfellows for libertarians, with whom they share little ideological ground. …

Abstract: The impact of ethnic diversity on the provision of local public goods and collective action in Africa remains largely unexplored. To address this gap, this paper explores the relationship between ethnic diversity and local primary school funding in rural western Kenya. The econometric identification strategy relies on the stable, historically determined patterns of ethnic land settlement in western Kenya. The main empirical result is that higher levels of local ethnic diversity is associated with sharply lower primary school funding and worse school facilities in western Kenya. The theory examines school choice and funding decisions when pupil mobility among schools is limited by land market imperfections and ethnic divisions, the relevant case for rural Africa, and predicts that local pupil transfers may lead to upward bias in OLS estimates of the impact of ethnic diversity. This theoretical prediction is confirmed in the data.

Abstract: The causes and consequences of child labor are examined within a household decision framework with survival uncertainty and endogenous fertility. The data come from a nationally representative survey of Indian rural households. The complex interactions uncovered by the analysis suggest that mere prohibition of child labor, or the imposition of school attendance, would make things worse, and would be difficult to enforce. Beneficially reducing child labor requires changing the economic environment to which the work of children constitutes, in the great majority of cases, the rational response. Suitable policies include capillary provision of schools, and public health improvements. The effects of these policies go far beyond direct impacts. They have favorable indirect repercussions on the school attendance, educational expenditure, labor participation, and nutritional status of children. They also discourage fertility. Women's education, and income re-distribution are also helpful, but land re-distribution may be counterproductive.

Abstract: This paper discusses the various definitions of home education and how the term can give rise to misinterpretations. In addition it covers recent changes to legislation and policy relating to home education in some European countries, such as France, Ireland, Luxembourg and Belgium. These changes have been based on a misunderstanding of the nature of home education. Little attention has been paid to the difference between children who are absconding from school and those who are being conscientiously educated by their parents at home. By contrast, there has been a slight but positive change in attitudes towards home education in some of the Lander (regions) of Germany. The author argues that governments should conduct well reasoned, objective research before considering measures to limit home education in any way.

Abstract: In 1999, Florida adopted the \"A-Plus\" accountability system, which included a provision that allowed students in certain low-performing schools to receive school vouchers. In a recently released report, An Evaluation of the Florida A-Plus Accountability and School Choice Program (Greene, 2001a), the author argued that early evidence from this program strongly implies that the program has led to significant improvement on test scores in schools threatened with vouchers. However, a careful analysis of Greene's findings and the Florida data suggests that these strong effects may be largely due to sample selection,

Abstract: Preface and Advisement About the Authors Introduction 1. Preventive Law: Developing Risk and Crisis Management Programs 2. The School and the Legal Environment Section A: Foundations of the School's Relatinoship to the Legal Environment Section B: Clauses of and Amendments to the US Constitution That Affect Education Practice Section C: Landmark Supreme Court Rulings That Affect Education Practice Section D: Highlights of Selected Portions of Federal Statutes That Affect Education Practice Section E: Workers' Compensation Section F: Legal Status of School Choice Section G: Statute of Limitations on Federal Cases 3. Constitutional and Statutory Foundations of Staff Selection, Contracting, and Evaluation Section A: Equal Employment Section B: Staff Selection Section C: Negligent Hiring, Defamation, and Referencing Section D: Performance Evaluation 4. Teachers' Rights Section A: Licensure and Employment Contracts Section B: Teachers' Rights Section C: Teacher Behaviors 5. Students' Rights Section A: Students' Rights to Symbolic Expression Section B: Students' Rights to Oral and Written Expression Section C: Students' Rights Related to Privacy, Search, and Seizure Section D: Students' Rights of Freedom to Assembly 6. Student Discipline Section A: Exclusion From School Section B: Corporal, Reasonable, and Excessive Punishment, Intentional Torts Section C: Disciplining Students for Acts Off School Grounds Section D: Liability for the Violation of Student Rights Section E: Zero Tolerance 7. Principal's Role in Special Education Services Section A: Key Terminology and Principles in Special Education Law Section B: Special Education Procedures 8. Academic Issues and Student Records Section A: Grade Assignment, Grade Reduction, Minimum Competency Tests Section B: Participation in Extracurricular Activities Section C: Student Records 9. Copyright Law 10. Search and Seizure 11. Program Management Section A: School Attendance Section B: Bilingual and Special Language Programs Section C: Religion in Public Schools Section D: "The Marketplace of Ideas" Section E: Health and Safety Issues 12. Students' Use of Technology, Social Media, and Other Emerging Cyber Issues Section A: Students' Right to Possess Electronic Devices and School District Ability to Search for and Within Electronic Devices Section B: Student Misconduct Using Technology On and Off School Grounds Section C: Cyber-Bullying and Harassment Section D: The Use of Technology by Schools to Monitor Students 13. Sexual Harassment 14. Danger Creation 15. Duty and Standards of Care: Liability for Negligence Section A: The Law of Torts and the Concept of Negligence Section B: The Concept of Negligence and its Application to Duty and Standards of Care Section C: The Concepts of Negligence, Duty, and Standards of Care and Their Application to Proper Instruction, Proper Supervision, Proper Maintenance, Field Trips, Post-Injury Treatment, Athletic Liability, and Spectator Safety Index

Abstract: Historically, most school boards in the United States assigned students to schools by drawing boundaries that established specific attendance areas. Where one lived determined the school one attended, if one chose to attend a public school. Families did not seem to have any choice at all—though the reality, as we shall see, was not quite this simple. The situation has changed substantially in recent years. Today, a wide variety of school choice mechanisms are available to parents and students—vouchers, magnet schools, charter schools, interdistrict choice programs, home-schooling, tax credits and tax deductions for private tuition, and, above all, school choice through residential selection. Responding to the increasing demand by parents for greater choice among schools, states today provide a greater range of choices to parents than ever before. Approximately 63 percent of American families with school-age children are making a choice when sending their child to school. According to a 1993 Department of Education survey, 39 percent of all parents said that where they have chosen to live was influenced by the school their child would attend.1 Another 11 percent

Abstract: Accountability is a complex idea frequently invoked as political rhetoric. Accordingly, a theoretical framework that includes bureaucratic, performance, market, and professional models of accountability is necessary to analyze the accountability system created for Arizona charter schools. Using a qualitative case study that relied on observations, interviews, and document analysis, this case indicated that valid and reliable performance data are not an intrinsic element of a school choice program. Accordingly, mechanisms that capture and distribute accurate, accessible, and wide-ranging information about schools of choice will assist consumers in making informed decisions when selecting among schools.

Abstract: The degree to which economic status is transmitted from one generation to the next is an important indicator for the inequality of opportunities. One crucial element of intergenerational mobility is the way parents influence the education of their children. Unlike in the UK or in the US, in Germany an important decision about which educational track to follow is made at a relatively early stage: after primary school, at around the age of ten. In this paper, we use micro data to analyze the association between parents' education and professional class and secondary track school choice and subsequent career prospects of the child. Our analysis covers the last 6 decades. We demonstrate that parents' educational background and professional class are strongly related to the secondary track school the child follows, and subsequent educational achievements. We find a slight convergence for individuals from different parental background over the last decades. We also find convergence between males and females. The relationship between parental class and children's education translates into earnings differentials later in life.

Abstract: The topic of religion within public schools has generated interest in several countries in recent years. In Canada, the United States, and England, educational policies favouring greater parental choice in education through grantmaintained schools, Charter schools and voucher plans have renewed parental interest in this area. Alternatively, one might argue that the lobbying by religious parents and others for choice has influenced educational policy. The dynamics of change are not always clear. This paper explores these dynamics through a two-part longitudinal case study in Alberta, Canada. My examination of events over a period of almost twenty years reveals both the micro-politics around religious programming in public schools and the macro-level changes in the policy context between the late 1970s and mid-1990s. This micro-macro approach provides a sense of the impact of local histories on education policies as well as parallels between sites.

Abstract: This thesis is entitled The Mediation of Market-Related Policies for the Provision of Public Second Level Education: An International Comparative Study of Selected Locations in England, Ireland and the USA. The two key words in this thesis title are 'mediation' and 'comparative'. The focus of this thesis is on the phenomenon of mediation. The market-related policies that are being examined in the light of mediation are choice policies or open enrolment policies for the provision of second level public schooling. However, this is not a thesis about school choice but rather on the factors and stakeholders that affect the mediation of a policy. As the focus is on mediation, and not on policy analysis, this study is therefore, of necessity, a qualitative one. The researcher used semi-structured interviews, combined with documentary evidence, to understand both the contexts and the interactions in which mediation of various kinds takes place. The second notable feature is that this study is a comparative one. The researcher chose three countries where market related policies were being implemented, albeit to different effect. The countries chosen were England, Ireland and the USA (Massachusetts). The comparative dimension enabled the researcher to challenge ethnocentric assumptions about the modus operandi of policy at the grass- roots level. In order to understand the operation of the market, the researcher selected comparable locations in all three countries. As 'markets' are intrinsically local, the researcher examined how policy is mediated at the local level. The three conurbations were selected on the basis of their comparability, none of which are capital cities. Research was conducted in all three locations in three separate phases: pre-pilot to ascertain their suitability; pilot work to prepare the groundwork and then the main study. In all, over sixty interviews were held at local, regional and national levels, although the focus was primarily on the local. Documentary sources were collected simultaneously. The analysis of the data was ongoing during the entire research process and progress was presented at conferences in the host research countries where useful feedback was obtained. The researcher used Bereday's comparative methodology and, by taking a factor approach, insights were gained into the cultures and contexts affecting the mediation of policy. The researcher hopes to add to comparative methodological theory through the use of multiple cross-national studies. The insights gained from the research questions: how, if at all, do the factors and stakeholders identified affect the mediation of policy, confirmed that this was indeed an area worthy of study. The outcomes, displayed in matrices in chapters 8 and 9, show that different combinations of factors affect how policies are mediated by the stakeholders and indirect factors involved in the immediate implementation of open enrolment policy. The cases also yielded idiosyncratic variants based on their particular educational histories and current circumstances. However, similar features were noted in all three countries in relation to enrolment issues. In brief, these were: increased political interaction at the local level; demographic changes on the rolls of high schools; de facto social segregation; differential funding mechanisms relating to enrolment; and different attitudes to public education on the part of interest groups in each location; and the significance of regulated space. This area is ripe for research, and there is a call in the literature for more in-depth analyses on such social interactions at the local level that affect different policy outcomes. It is hoped that this study will contribute to understanding the factors at work, both direct and indirect, which mediate policy in such a way that explain the potentially different outcomes of similar policies.

Abstract: This paper discusses public support for private education and educational vouchers in post-Communist Hungary and the Czech Republic, which support nonstate schools extensively. Although public schools were relatively good in these countries post-Communism, there was a surge in demand for private alternatives. The paper examines changing market incentives and traces the development of nonstate schools, as well as other education reforms, in these two countries since 1989. It notes factors influencing the establishment of nonstate schools, providing preliminary evidence regarding the role of such schools in expanding the range of opportunities for parents and students and in bringing pressure for reform to bear on the state school system. Private schools appear to have arisen in response to distinct market incentives. They are more common in areas where public schools are doing a poor job, as seen by the success rate of academic high schools in obtaining admission to the top universities for their graduates or of technical high schools in obtaining employment and high wages for their graduates. Preliminary evidence suggests that public schools facing private competition improve their performance. Preliminary evidence also supports the claims of advocates for nationwide voucher schemes. (Contains 25 references.) (SM)