School Choice Tradeoffs

R. Kenneth Godwin is Marshall Rausch Distinguished Professor of Political Science and Public Policy at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte. Frank Kemerer is Regents Professor-Emeritus of Education Law and Administration at the University of North Texas and founder of the Texas School Administrators' Legal Digest. He lives in San Diego, California.

"This is a very strong book in an important field--possibly made all the more so by the election of Governor Bush to the Presidency and the empirical grounding of the book in San Antonio, Texas, data... I am confident that the President and his advisors could learn a lot from this book, and it just could be the lever to convince the President's team to embrace new policy details--details that might pave the way for a more widespread adoption of school choice experiments." Stephen D. Sugarman, Agnes Roddy Robb Professor of Law, University of California School of Law, Berkeley "Godwin and Kemerer's School Choice Tradeoffs is probably the best overview and appraisal of the school choice issue yet written. It is comprehensive in scope, acquainting readers with every important aspect of the subject, and exploring many of them in great depth. The authors pull together a vast range of scholarly literature and do an admirable job of organizing it, making sense of it, and putting it to use in building their own perspective on the issue... Their treatment comes off as objective and thorough, one that readers can have confidence in and learn from." Terry M. Moe, Professor of Political Science and Senior Fellow of the Hoover Institution, Stanford University "School Choice Tradeoffs sets the issue of educational choice in a very broad context. The issues and tradeoffs are set within a carefully drawn theory of education. The authors rigorously explore the legal, social science, and policy issues surrounding choice, ending with a fascinating and detailed proposal to expand educational choice options and increase equity. This is a must-read book for any serious student of educational reform in America." John Witte, Director of the La Follette School and Professor of Political Science and Public Affairs, University of Wisconsin, Madison "Most educators and citizens have a visceral response to school choice. Rarely do they have an understanding of the issues. In this major work on the subject, Godwin and Kemerer have shown us that there are many different systems of school choice, and each treats liberty, equity, and diversity differently. They show how we can match our values to features of choice plans to make informed judgments." Henry M. Levin, William Heard Kilpatrick Professor of Economics and Education and Director, National Center for the Study of Privatization in Education, Teachers College, Columbia University "Proponents and opponents of school choice will find it enlightening to read Godwin and Kemerer's book. They emphasize that when society tries to realize multiple educational goals--liberty, equity, diversity, accountability, and achievement--tradeoffs are necessary. The book explores them with theory, data, judgment, and intelligence." Carol H. Weiss, Beatrice B. Whiting Professor, Harvard Graduate School of Education

• Preface 1. School Choice Options and Issues: An Overview Why Change Current Policies? Why Use School Choice to Promote Equity? Types of School Choice Major Issues in the Choice Debate Educational Outcomes Liberal Democratic Theory and Education Policy Parental Rights and Equality of Opportunity The Constitutionality of Vouchers and Tax Credits The Economics of Choice Accountability versus Autonomy Designing a Voucher Program That Promotes Equity 2. The Outcomes of School Choice Policies Why Proponents Expect Choice to Increase Academic Outcomes The Effects of Competition Increased Parental Involvement and Better Matching of Students and Schools Democratic Control and Bureaucratic Inefficiencies The Particular Problems Facing Inner-City Schools Why Opponents Expect Choice to Lower Academic Outcomes Empirical Hypotheses Concerning the Impacts of Choice School Choice and Segregation How Do Parents Choose? Policy Implications Do Private Schools Teach Public Values? The Effects of Choice on Teachers and Principals The Effects of Choice on Parents The Effects of Choice on Academic Outcomes The Effects of Competition Comparing Public and Private Schools High School and Beyond Results from Other National Databases Evaluations of Existing Choice Programs Privately Funded Voucher Experiments The Effects of Choice on Children Who Remain Behind Summary and Conclusions 3. Political Theory and School Choice (coauthor: Richard Ruderman) Liberal Democracy Liberal Arguments That Education Is in the Private Sphere Liberal Arguments for Including Education in the Public Sphere John Dewey and Progressive Liberalism Sharing Educational Responsibility: The Ideas of Amy Gutmann Diversity or Autonomy Comprehensive Liberalism versus Political Liberalism School Choice and Communitarian Thought Discussion Conclusion 4. Parent Rights, School Choice, and Equality of Opportunity (coauthor: Jennifer L. Kemerer) Parent Rights in Education How Fundamental Are Parent Rights? Coupling Parent Rights with Free Exercise of Religion Contemporary Developments Racial and Economic Segregation in Traditional Public Schools Racial Segregation Economic Segregation Continuing Inequalities in Public Schools Racial and Economic Inequalities in Choice Schools Choice Schools and Ethnic Sorting Racial Balance Measures Achieving Diversity without Unconstitutional Discrimination against Parents The Case for Diversity Proxies for Race Summary 5. Vouchers and Tax Benefits: Tradeoffs between Religious Freedom and Separation of Church and State A Tale of Two Judges Judge Higginbotham and the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program Judge Sadler and the Cleveland Scholarship Program Differing Perspectives Vouchers, Tax Benefits, and the Federal Constitution Channeling Money to Sectarian Private Schools Channeling Money to Parents and Students The Significance of Federalism Vouchers and State Constitutions Restrictive States Prohibition on Vouchers No Direct or Indirect Aid to Sectarian Private Schools What Is "Indirect Aid"? Funding for Public Schools Only Public Purpose Doctrine Judicial Precedent Permissive States No Anti-Establishment Provision Supportive Legal Climate Uncertain States Ambiguous Constitutional Terminology Absence of Authoritative Case Law Pending State Litigation Implications for Voucher Program Design Tax Benefits Summary 6. The Economics of Choice Tiebout Sorting and the Median Voter Theorem Funding Public Schools Present Funding Patterns within States Financing Public Choice Programs Summary Promoting Efficiency in the Production of Education The Apparent Decline in the Efficiency of Public Schools Possible Reasons for the Decline in Productive Efficiency Changes in Student Population Teachers' Unions The Cost of Educating Students with Disabilities Privatization and Vouchers Arguments That Vouchers Will Increase the Cost of Education Arguments That Vouchers Will Decrease Educational Costs by Increasing Efficiency Regulation versus Incentives Regulating Class Size Reductions (CSR) Summary Equity Considerations and Voucher Policies The Impact of Vouchers on Public Schools Conclusions 7. School Choice Regulation: Accountability versus Autonomy Are Markets Preferable to Democratic Control? Classical Economic Theory New Institutional Economics Legal Constraints on Institutional Autonomy State Constitutions, State Regulation, and State Action Unconstitutional Delegation Law State Action State Statutes, Administrative Regulations, Charters, and Contracts School Choice Accountability: Michigan's Public School Academies Lessons from Privatization of Prisons, Public Housing, and Special Education Privatization of Prisons Privatization of Public Housing Contracting-Out Special Education to Private Schools Vouchers and Private School Regulation Implications for Policymaking 8. The Politics of Choice and a Proposed School Choice Policy Political Forces That Oppose Expanding School Choice Producers of Public Education and Their Organizations Liberal and Minority Interest Groups Political Forces Supporting Increased School Choice Attributes of an Equitable and Efficient Policy Proposal A Proposal to Expand School Choice Accountability Provisions Additional Measures to Assist Low-Income Students and New Scholarship Schools Discussion of the Tradeoffs We Made Vouchers for All Income Levels and a Quota for Low-Income Students Allowing Schools to Charge Families Additional Tuition and Fees Transportation Student Admission Home Schooling Additional Benefits and Costs of the Proposed Policy The Political Feasibility of the Proposed Policy Charter Schools and Alternative Choice Proposals Concluding Remarks Notes Selected References Index