Much of the author's career as a researcher, writer, and teacher has been built on the idea that evidence should inform public policy. What works, why, and for whom? As a young scholar, the author joined large research projects concerning the extraordinarily controversial issue of school vouchers: programs that use tax dollars to fund private…

Education markets have spread worldwide over the past few decades. Frequently, the expansion of markets in education is presented by their promoters as a means to improve the opportunities of the most socioeconomically disadvantaged students. However, the evidence available shows that market-oriented policies that enhance competition and choice…

In this timely interdisciplinary volume, William Watkins has brought together leading scholars and activists to address some of the most urgent issues facing public education. What is underneath and behind the language of choice, efficiency, and improvement in current neoliberal discourse? How will urban and poor populations be affected? Will…

More than one billion people do not have access to an adequate water supply. In Gambia and Haiti, people live on less than 4 liters of water per day. By contrast, most toilets in the West use several times that amount of water for a single flush. The global distribution of water is making it increasingly difficult for poor people to access it, and…

Examines the Boston University/Chelsea project and explores how privatization intrinsically results in decreased openness and accountability. Discusses the historical background of Boston (MA) and its schools to decipher Chelsea's economic dependency, and repeated the falls into receivership and privatization. Includes a discussion on Boston's…

Examines the privatized management of the complete urban public school system of Chelsea (Massachusetts), the first example of school system privatization in the country. The role of Boston University and resistance of the Latino population are studied, and implications for educational reform and minority politics are examined. (SLD)