Many countries have introduced a range of policies that attempt to reformulate the relationships among government, schools, and parents through the application of market forces. This paper looks at the hidden curriculum of marketization and explores the extent to which the recent trend toward quasi-markets in public education systems are permeating the classroom and affecting the nature of educational transmissions. The paper looks at research from England, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States and explores the tension between the overt and "hidden" curriculum of the reforms and its significance for fostering different forms of social solidarity. The paper also connects with discussions on the globalization of education policy and/or broader changes in the nature of modern/postmodern societies, and the role of national education systems in encouraging and/or inhibiting such developments. (Contains 54 references.) (LMI)