This book examines the agenda of public education, offering formal presentations from a 1994 symposium on educational finance and a 1994 conference on rethinking public education. There are 12 chapters: (1) "School Reform: The Riddle of Change and Stability" (Larry Cuban); (2) "What Are We Learning about Learning in Schools?" (Jerome Bruner); (3) "Learning, Teaching, and Existential Meaning" (Nel Noddings); (4) "Habits of Mind: Democratic Values and the Creation of Effective Learning Communities" (Deborah Meier); (5) "Mobilizing Schools and Communities to Develop Ethics and Social Responsibility" (Edward T. Joyner); (6) "Professional Development: Learning from Experience" (Lee S. Shulman); (7) "Preparing Teachers for Twenty-First-Century Schools: Teacher Learning in Global Perspective" (Albert Shanker); (8) "Bringing Success to Scale in Public Education: Strategy, Designs, and New American Schools" (John L. Anderson); (9) "Building Bridges: How to Make Business-Education Partnerships Work" (Robert L. Wehling); (10) "Equity and Liberty in Education Funding" (Kern Alexander); (11) "Equity, Adequacy, and Variable Spending in Public Education" (Richard A. Rossmiller); and (12) "An American Primer: A Guide to Democratic School Reform" (Joseph Featherstone). (SM)