Youth Policy in Transition.

Examines three national commission reports on the status of American youth and secondary schools. These reports found: (1) Youth were segregated in schools from other age groups in society. (2) They were undergoing earlier physical growth and new patterns of social development. (3) There was a lengthening delay between their readiness for adulthood and society's readiness to accord it. The reports suggested that youth should be more dispersed among work places rather than segregated in schools. The Rand review of these reports concludes that experiments with dispersion, and more humane and flexible high schools should merit cautious exploration. However, this might have adverse equity implications for minorities and women. The review suggests that better integration of youth with work requires policies dealing with quantity and quality of jobs. The review concludes with specific recommendations for local, state, and federal policymakers and for research. 169 pp. Bibliog.