The article outlines a theoretical framework for understanding education policy and education reforms based on the concept of knowledge regimes. The concept refers to understandings and definitions of governance and procedural aspects, manners of governing and curriculum issues, thus it comprises contents, structures, and processes of education…

This study uses an innovative methodology and six waves of "Schools and Staffing Survey" data spanning two decades (1988-2008) to assess the potential of midcareer entrants--teachers who enter the profession from careers outside of education--to diversify teaching, staff public schools, and fill vacancies in high-need subjects. We find…

This research examines how the conservative movement has used both conservative think tanks and the media to gain entry into the field of education policy. The study examines how the conservative movement has attempted to use think tanks as legitimating organizations to enter the education policy arena by (a) measuring the historical growth in the…

Professionalization is an important but overlooked dimension in education politics, particularly the politics of accountability. To isolate the importance of professionalization, this article compares accountability movements in K-12 education with similar movements in higher education. I draw on three pairs of reports that have sought to impose…

Over the years that I have been writing the Reviewing Policy section of this journal, I have paid particular attention to critical conceptual and empirical work that either overtly supports or directly challenges the taken-for-granted assumptions that tend to guide dominant policies in education. These policies may deal with larger issues…

This article examines how SEAs in three states designed, installed, and operated statewide, longitudinal student information systems (SLSIS). SLSIS track individual students' progress in K-12 schools, college, and beyond and link it to individual schools and teachers. They are key components of the information infrastructure of test-based…

Partnerships between colleges and universities and K-12 school districts attempt to improve access to higher education by tailoring college outreach and teacher professional development programs to local needs as well as aligning high school curricula with higher education admissions criteria. In this article, we conduct a quasi-experimental…

Applying a Multiple Streams framework, the article documents the development and ultimate undoing of what became known as the national sales tax plan for education. The authors identify four factors that coalesced to lead the Nixon administration to propose replacing local property taxes with a federal value-added tax to finance K-12 education.…

This chapter examines how the previously distinct worlds of early childhood education (ECE) and K-12 public school education are being drawn together through the recent and rapid advances of prekindergarten programming in the United States. Tensions around teaching philosophies, teacher qualifications, and financing are presented to illustrate the…

Supporters of public education fear attempts to privatize schools, while the private sector has always struggled against the monopolistic power of the public schools that educates almost 90% of all K-12 students. This trepidation has recently been intensified by the creation of a "third sector" that includes charter schools, voucher programs, and…

Although support for K-12 education has long been a priority for philanthropic organizations, foundations are increasingly choosing to play a leading role in fostering the development and implementation of new policies designed to reform K-12 education. This article is an effort to understand the strategies and tactics employed by foundations…

Homeschooling has developed from a small, isolated, parent-led effort to a vibrant national movement to lobby for and legalize K-12 education at home in all 50 states. Although a majority of homeschool families are Evangelical Christians, the others come from a variety of religious and nonreligious backgrounds, giving homeschooling a broad…

This article examines an emerging preference for education tax credit programs in a post-"Zelman" era. First, the authors detail the origin of tax credits and the types of existing plans. Second, they review the assumptions underlying the supposed advantages that may favor tax credits as a feasible alternative to vouchers. Third, they analyze…

This article reviews implementation of the school choice and supplementary educational services provisions contained in the No Child Left Behind Act. School district progress, resistance, and obstacles to implementation are discussed and a number of practical remedies to improve implementation of school choice and supplemental educational services…

This article discusses the limited use of education vouchers in an era of unprecedented growth in school choice. It is divided into two parts: first, a description of the policy, political, and legal barriers that may limit the expansion of large-scale voucher programs is presented. Discussion then shifts to the efforts of voucher advocates to…