Four lengthy papers and an introduction discuss case studies of regional disparities in educational development in Cameroon, Madagascar, Kenya, Tanzania, and Thailand. In considering the specific political and socioeconomic contexts of these countries, the papers focus on methods of both analyzing the causes of disparities and reducing the resultant inequalities. The introduction by the two editors summarizes the papers and the issues involved. Jean-Yves Martin's paper on Cameroon and Philippe Hugon's on Madagascar examine the sociohistorical causes of regional disparities and discuss the proper geographical unit to use in measuring educational disparities. Kamol Sudaprasert, Vichai Tunsiri, and Ta Ngoc Chau address the problem of data analysis in a paper on Thailand's regional disparities in educational access, social characteristics, and socioeconomic development. Finally, David Court and Kabiru Kinyanjui compare Kenyan and Tanzanian efforts to reduce regional disparities: Kenya attempted to expand its educational system while Tanzania tried to redistribute educational opportunities. (Author/RW)