The prospect of an end to the Conservative era of educational reform has stimulated a revival of alternative policies - from the Labour Party and from leading left-of-centre educationalists. This pamphlet offers a critical assessment of these emerging agendas. It evaluates the legacy of Conservative reform and examines the ideas of modernisation and school effectiveness that dominate alternative proposals for change. The contributors come from teacher trade unionism, cultural studies, Labour Party activism and educational policy studies, and their articles range from critique and strategy to broad questions of cultural theory.