Sponsored by the Association for Education Finance and Policy (AEFP), the second edition of this groundbreaking handbook assembles in one place the existing research-based knowledge in education finance and policy, with particular attention to elementary and secondary education. Chapters from the first edition have been fully updated and revised to reflect current developments, new policies, and recent research. With new chapters on teacher evaluation, alternatives to traditional public schooling, and cost-benefit analysis, this volume provides a readily available current resource for anyone involved in education finance and policy. "The Handbook of Research in Education Finance and Policy" traces the evolution of the field from its initial focus on school inputs and revenue sources used to finance these inputs, to a focus on educational outcomes and the larger policies used to achieve them. Chapters show how decision making in school finance inevitably interacts with decisions about governance, accountability, equity, privatization, and other areas of education policy. Because a full understanding of important contemporary issues requires inputs from a variety of perspectives, the "Handbook" draws on contributors from a number of disciplines. Although many of the chapters cover complex, state-of-the-art empirical research, the authors explain key concepts in language that non-specialists can understand. This comprehensive, balanced, and accessible resource provides a wealth of factual information, data, and wisdom to help educators improve the quality of education in the United States. The following contents are included: Section I: Perspectives on Education Finance and Policy: (1) History and Scholarship Regarding United States Education Finance and Policy (Matthew G. Springer, Eric A. Houck, and James W. Guthrie); (2) The Role of Economics in Education Policy Research (Dominic J. Brewer, Guilbert C. Hentschke and Eric R. Eide); (3) The Past, Present, and Possible Futures of Educational Finance Reform Litigation (William S. Koski and Jesse Hahnel); (4) The Continually Evolving Political Context of Education Finance (James W. Guthrie and Kenneth K. Wong); (5) Educational Goals: A Public Perspective (Rebecca Jacobsen and Richard Rothstein); (6) Quantitative Research Methods in Education Finance and Policy (Patrick J. McEwan); and (7) International Large-Scale Assessments: Uses and Implications (Stephen P. Heyneman and Bommi Lee). Section II: Making Money Matter: (8) Toward an Understanding of Productivity in Education (Jennifer King Rice and Amy Ellen Schwartz); (9) Cost-Benefit Analysis and Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (Clive Belfield); (10) Teachers Clearly Matter, but Finding Effective Teacher Policies Has Proven Challenging (Dan Goldhaber); (11) Teacher Evaluation for Accountability and Development (Morgaen L. Donaldson and John P. Papay); (12) School Accountability and Student Achievement (David N. Figlio and Helen F. Ladd); and (13) School Competition and Student Outcomes (Brian Gill and Kevin Booker). Section III: (14) Conceptions of Equity and Adequacy in School Finance (Bruce D. Baker and Preston C. Green); (15) Measuring Equity and Adequacy in School Finance (Thomas A. Downes and Leanna Stiefel); (16) Measurement of Cost Differentials (William D. Duncombe, Phuong Nguyen-Hoang and John Yinger); (17) Intergovernmental Aid Formulas and Case Studies (Lawrence O. Picus, Margaret E. Goertz and Allan Odden); and (18) Education Equity in an International Context (Edward B. Fiske and Helen F. Ladd). Section IV: Changing Patterns of Governance and Finance: (19) The Changing Federal Role in Education Finance and Governance (Nora E. Gordon); (20) The Role of Nongovernmental Organizations in Financing Public Schools (Janet S. Hansen, Michelle Hall, Dominic Brewer and Jane Hannaway); (21) Equity, Adequacy and the Evolving State Role in Education Finance (Sean P. Corcoran and William N. Evans); (22) Local Funding of Schools: The Property Tax and Its Alternatives (Therese J. McGuire, Leslie E. Papke and Andrew Reschovsky); and (23) Tax and Expenditure Limits, School Finance and School Quality (Thomas A. Downes and David N. Figlio). Section V: Educational Markets and Decentralization: (24) Issues in Educational Privatization (Henry M. Levin); (25) Charter Schools (Robert Bifulco and Katrina Bulkley); (26) Beyond the Rhetoric: Surveying the Evidence on Vouchers and Tax Credits (Ron Zimmer and Eric P. Bettinger); and (27) Emerging Alternatives to Neighborhood-based Public Schooling (Joshua M. Cowan and Eugenia F. Toma). Section VI: Race, SES and Achievement Gaps: (28) Patterns and Trends in Racial/Ethnic and Socioeconomic Academic Achievement Gaps (Sean F. Reardon, Joseph P. Robinson-Cimpian and Ericka S. Weathers); (29) Early Childhood and the Achievement Gap (Daphna Bassok and Susanna Loeb); (30) Increasing the Effectiveness of Teachers in Low-Performing Schools (Melinda Adnot and James Wyckoff); and (31) Effects of Educational Policies on Disadvantaged Students: From Desegregation to Accountability (Douglas N. Harris). Section VII: Special Circumstances: (32) Special Education (Tom Parrish, Jenifer J. Harr-Robins, and Jay G. Chambers); (33) Resource Needs for Educating Linguistic Minority Students (Russell W. Rumberger and Patricia Gándara); (34) Challenges and Strategies Associated with Rural School Settings (John W. Sipple and Brian O. Brent); (35) The Organizational and Fiscal Implications of Transient Student Populations (Kieran M. Killeen and Kai A. Schafft); and (36) Bridging the High School-College Divide (Thomas R. Bailey and Melinda Mechur Karp).