Adequacy, Accountability, and the Future of Public Education Funding

This volume assesses the impact of the decade-old move in public education reform away from funding equalization and toward adequacy and accountability. In six chapters, the author provides a detailed introduction, the theoretical and empirical background, and an analysis of the prospects of future state funding of public education. He includes a Connecticut-based case study that examines state legislative motivations and suggests methods for predicting future state behaviors. Following the case study, the author offers an analysis of policy options that balance equity, performance, and tax burdens. The conclusion pays particular attention to the consequences of current reform policies and states’ willingness to fund them, or not.