Suggests the extent to and particular ways in which urban governments and school systems are undemocratic and unresponsive to community needs. Provides an example of the general inability of minority groups to obtain their social and political goals through either protest or political bargaining. (Author/AM)

The following 14 essays consider relationships among schooling, education, and the state; alternatives to existing systems; and educating minorities and the disadvantaged: (1) "Growing Up Blighted: Reflections on the 'Secret Power' in the American Experience" (C. Burgess); (2) "The Evolving Political Structure of American…

This report describes the New York City public school system's experiences with decentralization since 1970. The report includes an introductory chapter explaining the conditions that led to the adoption of decentralization; analytical case studies of eight New York City decentralized school districts; and two concluding chapters on findings and…

The belief that structural change providing for the representation of minority parents in urban school districts would improve educational services for their children has led to an emphasis on school-system controlled or affiliated channels for participation. This emphasis, based on assumptions about parent participation in suburban districts, has…