NEW YORK -- A new guide from the nonpartisan, nonprofit Public Agenda lets parents, taxpayers and other concerned citizens in on a debate that is dominating politics and election campaigns: public school reform.

Produced in conjunction with the Kettering Foundation, Public Schools: Is There a Way to Fix Them? clarifies an issue that is too often obfuscated by jargon and incomplete information. Instead of hearing snippets about vouchers on the evening news, or reading an advocacy tract on a newspaper's op-ed page, readers of this guide will find the different approaches to school improvement mapped out in an objective- and fair manner. The 28-page guide, which has been reviewed by education experts for accuracy and fairness, is designed to help readers make up their own minds about how best to reform public education.

An Internet companion to the print guide, available on Public Agenda Online (www.publicagenda.org), offers a quick summary of major points along with extensive information about education and public opinion on the state of the nation's schools.

In the print guide, author Michael deCourcy Hinds, a Public Agenda vice president and a former New York Times correspondent, outlines the arguments for and against four general philosophies: 1) Give parents a choice of public and private schools; 2) Raise standards for students and teachers; 3) Involve parents and the community in the schools; and 4) Provide adequate funds to all schools.

The guide is one of several dozen that Public Agenda has produced with Kettering over the past 15 years. Individual copies may be ordered for $5, plus $2.50 for shipping and handling, by calling Public Agenda at (212) 686-6610. An order form, as well as a listing of other issues guides, is also available on Public Agenda Online.

Public Agenda was founded in 1975 by Cyrus R. Vance, the former U.S. secretary of state, and Daniel Yankelovich, the social scientist and author. Public Agenda Online provides opinion data and background information on 19 issues that help inform interested citizens about the country's major concerns as the 2000 election gets underway.