Controlling Choice � The Quick and the Ed

Controlling Choice � The Quick and the Ed

Controlling Choice

by Chad Aldeman

Two districts have come under fire this week for recent or upcoming changes to the way students are paired with schools, commonly called school assignment plans. In Wake County, NC, the school board is considering moving away from its diversity-based plan in favor of a policy called “controlled choice,” while Chicago has seen that its diversity plan has actually increased racial segregation. Rather than comment on these particular situations, I’ll offer up lessons from the development of mandatory school choice plans in New York City and Boston that allocate precious school seats fairly and efficiently.

Race, class, and the desire for good schools are common to all of these cities. The picture below, titled The

QUICK Hits

by Forrest Hinton

Quick Hits is a short compilation of question-raising news stories, blog posts, and video clips that Education Sector team members are reading and viewing each day.

• There’s no question that NCLB drove the education conversation for the last decade. What will be the key influence in the decade to come? (EdReformers)
• Could libraries become the new pop culture cupcakes? (NPR)
• And while you’re pondering that question, have you seen “Librarians Do Gaga?” (YouTube)
• “Money is a powerful motivator for non-profit officials, not just for private-sector managers”? (Community College Spotlight)
• Children with 500 or more books in their homes get 3.2 years more schooling, on average, than children in bookless homes? (Class Struggle)