This text brings together contributors for an in-depth look at the nation's largest school system. Topics covered include the changing demographics of city schools, the impending teacher shortage, reading instruction, special education, bilingual education, school governance, charter schools, choice, school finance reform and the role of teacher unions. The book also provides perspectives on Catholic schools, Jewish day schools and historically black independent schools. Diane Ravitch, Joseph P. Viteritti and their co-authors explore pedagogical, institutional, and policy issues in an urban school system whose challenges are those of American urban education writ large. The authors conclude that we know a lot more about how to provide effective educational services for a diverse population of urban school children than performance data would suggest.