COMPARING DESEGREGATION INTERVENTION STRATEGIES

The author examines the question of which type of desegregation plan m ost effectively reduces segregation in American public schools. This s tudy departs from previous research in that the school desegregation p lans are not categorized as mandatory and voluntary. Rather a choice-a ssignment continuum is created to account for more of the variation be tween diverse desegregation orders that have been implemented in urban America. By several rigid criteria, desegregation plans relying on as signment techniques reduce the level of segregation to a greater degre e than choice techniques.