Panacea or Perestroika: A Socio-Economic Analysis of the Equity and EfficiencyEffects of Choice in Education

摘要

This paper looks at the equity and efficiency effects of Choice. Specificallystudied is the equalization effects in school finance and the collective add-on. Analyzed as a system, the educational sector is described as a process whereby the policy reproduces itself. Hence, the control of the sector by state, parental and social interests is considered as the system is set in motion under the Choice proposal. Operating under the principles of best and equal, or inequality and equality, the system expands until it reaches a point of diminishing marginal utility. Because equity and efficiency are difficult to achieve synonomously, the question is raised regarding whether we are underinvesting in our children and whether a common commitment to democratic citizenship should lie at the heart of education.