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Active and direct participation by the public in school affairs is being advocated from many quarters. The arguments for and against expanded public participation as well as descriptions of many examples of public participation in policy‐making are given. The examples are about equally divided between situations occurring in the USA and abroad.

Most countries are experimenting with ways to involve a wider section of the public in educational decision‐making. Arguments for increased participation are based on both democratic theory and effectiveness. There is need for procedures to simultaneously encourage participation while informing the participants. Experiments under way in various European countries include organizational decentralization, public participation in planning and in selection of administrators, citizen advocacy groups, public representation in collective bargaining, and representation on school councils. Active engagement of citizens in policy‐making will lead to significant policy changes, but of what sort will depend on the context.