Using three determinants of equity--disparity, wealth neutrality, and sufficiency--this study examines public school financing in four Canadian provinces (Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland, and New Brunswick) to find whether equity as defined in the United States has been achieved and what the state role has been. (JW)

Reports the results of a study measuring the equity of Pennsylvania's school finance system following the state's school finance reform of 1977. Uses a measure of actual instructional expense to compile data for a three-year period, and identifies two equity standards--equalization and fiscal neutrality--as bases for measurement. (JW)

The significance of the "New Federalism" for education is discussed in a philosophical context. The probable impact of this political trend on cultural, class, and social relationships is predicted. (PP)

Examines Georgia's model capital outlay program for public schools. Despite the current program's many positive aspects, incentives provided to local school districts can lead to inefficiencies, contradictions, and inequities for districts with older physical plants. The program also contains an incentive to use debt financing, rather than…

Neoconservative advocates of private and religious school choice are trying to exploit the dissatisfactions of poor, predominantly minority parents to create a publicly funded private school system free of public control and oversight. This alternative system would inevitably reproduce and legally sanction the "separate but equal"…

Analyzes 1990-91 school finance data for six New England states. Examines state support for local education, distribution of state aid in relation to local wealth differences, these policies' effect on funding equity for local taxpayers, and the relationship between taxpayer equity and per-pupil spending disparities. Only Maine and Vermont have…

School governance reform in post-apartheid South Africa aimed to democratize schooling while accommodating diverse school histories of underdevelopment or self-management. Analysis of relevant legislation shows the reform was structured to allow representative democracy and partnerships. But two recent studies suggest that governance reforms have…

South Africa's political system has deprived blacks of voting rights and educational access. Recent educational reforms have been hampered by education's continued alignment with political ideologies. Since many are severely hurting from conflict in their communities and schools, mediation programs are sorely needed, along with leadership and…

Responds to Romberg's reaction and argues that the present conservative social context will determine the use to which the "Standards" are put. Expresses concern that unequal school finance policies in providing technologically rich classroom environments will result in educational stratification. (MDH)

Examines the consequences of Vermont's effort to equalize school funding so that no district could spend more on its children than another district, exploring the ways in which this approach has lessened education for many, rather than improving education for the disadvantaged. Emphasizes strong public opinion about property taxes and school…

Although vouchers were popular among 1970s leftists, a political standoff has kept them unavailable to 99% of urban school children. This article debunks common arguments against vouchers and advocates a system that awards substantial voucher amounts (a 20% spending boost) to needy students, thus mollifying conservatives and progressives. (MLH)

Although schools are planning and implementing local area networks and Internet access, acquiring and maintaining technology can be exceptionally costly. Administrators must decide between pedagogical need versus a political, reactive "keeping up with the Joneses" mentality valuing high student-to-computer ratios. Schools need more…

Focuses on the importance of expanding schooling in a post-Apartheid South Africa. Argues that access policy should be based on a notion of educational development that is linked to the overall socioeconomic development of the society. Describes the historical inequality of access to schooling in South Africa, and advocates for addressing the low…

Educators have long recognized the negative pedagogical effects of the strong centralization, curricular uniformity, and fragmentation that characterizes Israel's equity-driven education system. A recent experiment with site-based management at nine elementary schools may increase teacher and parental involvement, improve school climate, and…

The democratic imperative proclaims that an inequitable, inadequate education system is unacceptable. Exploring this imperative's implications for fiscal-equity reform, this article overviews 3 decades of legal trends in federal and state fiscal equity and educational adequacy litigation, examines adequacy's liberal ideological roots, and explains…