Governance Structure, Resource Allocation, and Equity Policy

Abstract

Educational inequality remains a major challenge to policymakers as our nation prepares to enter the 21st century. As social institutions, public schools are shaped by the deleterious effects of poverty, family disorganization, and racial and cultural isolation. Inequality in the life chances of children growing up in different socioeconomic environments is clearly evident in the schools they attend (Educational Testing Service, 1991; Kozol, 1991; Orfield & Reardon, 1992). Children from middle-class families are likely to attend suburban schools with an advanced curriculum supported by a stable tax base. In the inner city, minority children who come from low-income backgrounds are likely to concentrate in schools that lack basic supplies because of insufficient funds. Physical facilities are noticeably inferior in inner-city schools. Consequently, significant inequity exists in student access to knowledge and to instruction (Darling-Hammond, in press). Many minority youths are assigned to general education tracks with low academic expectations, whereas students from middle-class families are enrolled in collegepreparatory programs (Oakes, 1992). Too often, educational opportunities are socially structured.