ABSTRACT
I have argued that federal and other public policies severely delimit educational opportunity in urban school systems. I have also argued that even when school reform succeeds it fails-as there are few, if any, positive consequences for students’ futures. The analysis suggests that solutions to the problems of city schools should not be limited to reforms addressing class size, standardized testing, and small schools. We need solutions to the problems of urban education that are considerably more comprehensive-that provide foundational support for the schools and their reform. We need policies that deal with the complex causes of the poverty of the schools in which teachers and students, neighborhoods, and families are caught. Joblessness, low wages, and concentrated segregation of poor families all create formidable barriers to urban educational equity and reward.
