Frederick M. Hess
2002
Brookings has just published this important book by Frederick M. Hess, a young but insightful political scientist at the University of Virginia. Based on case studies of Cleveland, Milwaukee and Edgewood, Texas (the San Antonio district with the most ambitious privately-funded voucher program), this volume tries, in the author's words, to provide "a more nuanced consideration of the way education competition works in practice," to "shed light on the ways in which urban system structure and practice hamper efforts to improve urban schooling," and to advance understanding of "the promise that market-driven reform holds for the provision of public services." He concludes that competition is a useful but limited strategy for the reform of urban education, in itself not powerful enough to transform dysfunctional school systems. He outlines a number of other strategies for change. It's a perceptive book, though I'm ultimately unpersuaded by his explanation of why a "hybrid" combining market forces with top-down, results-based accountability won't work better than either strategy taken alone. Serious followers of contemporary education policy debates will want their own copies. The ISBN is 0815702094. You can learn more at http://www.brookings.edu/savingsforthepoor/revolution%5Fmargins.htm.
