This collection presents the best of 8 years of "Rethinking Schools," an education reform journal created in Milwaukee (Wisconsin) in 1986 by teachers vitally concerned with educational change. This volume contains 29 essays by classroom teachers, as well as pieces by such national reform figures as Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Herbert Kohl, Bill Bigelow, Howard Zinn, Stan Karp, and Lisa Delpit. Topics include: (1) the theory of school reform, (2) the implications of reform for the day-to-day classroom, (3) current controversies, and (4) the different roles reformers can play. Each section is followed by a list of relevant books and materials. Sections are: (1) "Multiculturalism and Antibias Education"; (2) "Rethinking the Curriculum" for Social Studies and Language Arts; (3)"Stratification in the Classroom: Testing and Tracking"; (4) "Beyond the Classroom: National Policy Concerns"; and (5) "Building a Community: Teachers, Students, and Parents." (SLD)