The Political Economy of Market-Based Educational Policies

Abstract

The authors situate the emergence and effects of contemporary market-based reforms within a framework of urban political economy that centers on racial inequality. They discuss how and why market-based reforms have evolved alongside racialized political and economic trends that have transformed cities over the past century, and they critically evaluate the research literature in light of such trends. The authors argue that deterioration of the urban core’s infrastructure, schools, and housing has created ripe conditions for market-oriented reforms to take root. They also argue that these reforms have exacerbated divides in increasingly unequal and bifurcated cities. The authors conclude that these intersections and interactions between market-based reforms and urban contexts must be addressed by policy and research.