The policies and practices that shape magnet schools are examined, and the meaning and importance of magnet schools are explored. The chapters are: (1) "School Choice in the Public Arena"; (2) "The Context of Magnet Schools: The Policies and Politics of Desegregation in Cincinnati and St. Louis"; (3) "Magnet Schools and the Social Context of School Choice"; (4) "Community or Anonymity? Patterns of Parent Involvement and Family-School Interactions in Magnet Schools"; (5) "Magnet School Teachers and Their Workplace"; and (6)"Rethinking Our Choices." Three appendixes discuss the research methodology and the variables constructed from survey questionnaires and contain the interview guide for parents. (Contains 3 figures, 11 tables, and 139 references.) (SLD)