Changing the Face of Education

Choosing Equality: School Choice, the Constitution, and Civil Society

by: Joseph P. Viteritti

America is now in the second generation of debate on school choice. The first was prompted by the provocative voucher proposal conceived by Milton Friedman in 1955 and brought into the mainstream by Chubb and Moe's seminal book Politics, Markets, and American Schools (Brookings, 1990). It introduced a pure market model in which schools would be publicly financed but privately operated. While opponents continue to contend that choice will lead to the demise of public education, the weakening of civil society, and the fostering of separate and unequal systems of education, Joseph P. Viteritti argues that these long-held assertions must give way to present realities. The rich and diverse experience we have had with magnet schools, controlled choice, inter-district choice, charter schools, privately funded vouchers, and public vouchers in Milwaukee and Cleveland provides a solid basis for crafting a choice policy that enhances the educational opportunities of children whose needs are not being met by the present system of public education.

Amazon Price: $28.59 (as of 11/12/2009)

Mandate for Leadership: Principles to Limit Government, Expand Freedom, and Strengthen America

by: The Heritage Foundation

Mandate for Leadership will help you hold politicians to their promises. This guide from The Heritage Foundation provides conservative solutions to issues ranging from free trade to Social Security reform to reducing federal spending.

In 1980, President Ronald Reagan used Heritage's first Mandate to develop many of his policies. In fact, he used it so much it became a "kind of handbook for the new administration," according to The Washington Post.

Make Mandate for Leadership your handbook, too.

Download pdf version here.

Amazon Price: $4.95 (as of 11/12/2009)

Education and Capitalism: How Overcoming Our Fear of Markets and Economics Can Improve America's Schools (Hoover Institution Press Publication)

by: Herbert J. Walberg, Joseph L. Bast

Unless popular myths about capitalism are challenged, school reform will stall well short of success.
-From the introduction to Education and Capitalism "This is a thoughtful, thorough examination of the virtues of capitalism and free markets as a way to organize elementary and secondary education in a democracy."
-Milton Friedman Senior research fellow, Hoover Institution Nobel Prize winner in economic sciences For parents, teachers, policymakers, taxpayers, and scholars who want better schools for children regardless of their race, social background, or parents' income, this book asserts that, if schools were "privatized" (moved from the public to the private sector), they could once again do a superior job providing kindergarten to twelfth-grade (K-12) education. Drawing on insights and findings from history, psychology, sociology, political science, and economics, the authors reveal.

Amazon Price: $15.00 (as of 11/12/2009)

We Can Rescue Our Children

by: Herbert J. Walberg

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Brookings Papers on Education Policy 2006-2007 (Brookings Papers on Education Policy)

by: Tom Loveless

Amazon Price: $35.00 (as of 11/12/2009)

What America Can Learn from School Choice in Other Countries

by: David Salisbury

Parents in many other countries have more freedom of choice in education than Americans do. In Chile, Sweden, and the Netherlands, they can choose private schools without financial penalty. As we expand school choice in the United States, reformers and policymakers should look beyond our borders and learn from the examples of other countries. Critics in America claim that school choice would benefit a minority of students at the expense of the majority or that choice in education would drain funding from public schools and segregate students into racial or economic groups. Are these claims based on fact or fear?
In this collection, scholars from Europe, South America, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and the United States examine other countries' experiences with school choice and draw out critical lessons for America. What school choice policies are most effective? How well do private schools serve the poor? What policies are necessary to promote the widest selection of educational opportunities for the largest number of children? Also, what controls and regulations are most harmful to the development of a competitive education industry? Has school choice in other countries led to a free education market, or has it, at least in some cases, led instead to increased regulations, regimentation, and uniformity among private and public schools?
The wealth of information and insights contained in this volume will aid policymakers and reformers as they search for the best ways to improve American education.

Amazon Price: $24.95 (as of 11/12/2009)

Educational Freedom in Urban America: Fifty Years After Brown v. Board of Education

by: David Salisbury

In this collection, a dozen leading scholars, educators, and reformers-including Andrew Coulson, Floyd Flake, Frederick Hess, and Paul E. Peterson-examine the legacy of Brown v. Board and its relation to the modern-day school choice movement. A school administrator and a charter school founder also reveal the challenges and obstacles faced by enterprising teachers in trying to help their students. Together these experts expose the modern barriers that deprive inner-city children of a good education and call for increased school choice as the most effective way to achieve the goals of Brown v. Board.

Amazon Price: $24.95 (as of 11/12/2009)