After years of reform and accompanying frustration, public schools of choice have become one of today's most popular school reform strategies. More than 20 states have either passed choice legislation or are considering such action. At the present, plans based on parental influence represent the majority of district choice plans, including magnet schools and controlled choice schools. This analysis, composed of seven chapters, examines the controversy of school choice and the agendas supporting it. While one agenda detailed within this document can be characterized as "reaction to the present," the second, a well-known agenda for choice is actually "choice as a means for desegregating schools." A third, less known agenda for choice is presented as "choice as a catalyst for change." Because educators must implement policies that not only benefit individual students but also ensure that schools represent the broad, democratic interests of society as a whole, this analysis attempts to assist educators to make informed decisions about choice based on the context in which they and their students teach and learn. Examples of educational values and of curriculum and instructional elements of "choice" programs, developed by the Minnesota Department of Education, are appended. The bibliography contains 53 references. (KM)