<P> Other researchers argue that, given restrictive court rulings and the increasingly strong relationship between neighborhood and school segregation, integration efforts should instead focus on reducing racial segregation in neighborhoods . This could be achieved, in part, by greater enforcement of the Fair Housing Act and / or removal of low - density zoning laws . Policy could also set aside low - income housing in new community developments that have a strong school district based on income . </P> <P> In the school choice realm, policy can ensure that greater choice facilitates integration by, for instance, adopting "civil rights policies" for charter schools . Such policies could require charter schools to recruit diverse faculty and students, provide transportation to ensure access for poor students, and / or have a racial composition that does not differ greatly from that of the public school population . Expanding the availability of magnet schools--which were initially created with school desegregation efforts and civil rights policies in mind--could also lead to increased integration, especially in those instances when magnet schools can draw students from separate (and segregated) attendance zones and school districts . Alternatively, states could move towards county - or region - level school districting, allowing students to be drawn from larger and more diverse geographic areas . </P> <P> According to some scholars, school assignment policies should primarily focus on socioeconomic integration rather than racial integration . As Richard D. Kahlenberg writes, "Racial integration is a very important aim, but if one's goal is boosting academic achievement, what really matters is economic integration ." Kahlenberg refers to a body of research showing that the low overall socioeconomic status of a school is clearly linked to less learning for students, even after controlling for age, race, and family socioeconomic status . In particular, the socioeconomic composition of a school may lead to lower student achievement through its effect on "school processes," such as academic climate and teachers' expectations of students' ability to learn . If reforms could equalize these school processes across schools, socioeconomic and racial integration policies might not be necessary to close achievement gaps . Sociologist Amy Stuart Wells, however, argues that the original intent of school desegregation was to improve blacks' access to important social institutions and opportunities, thereby improving their long - run life outcomes . Discussions about ending racial integration policies, though, largely focus on the relationship between integration and short - run outcomes such as test scores . In Stuart's view, long - term outcomes should be emphasized in order to appreciate the true social importance of integration . </P>

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