Systemic School Reform in the 1990s A Local Perspective

Abstract

This article focuses on the development of state systemic reform from the perspective of local participants in nine states. The findings suggest that implementation varies with local capacity. Districts without substantive technical capacity are most critical of the lack of time, staff development, and information necessary to enact complex, multifaceted policies. State systemic reform agendas are also frequently viewed as incompatible with pressing local issues, particularly school violence and the condition of school facilities. However, the most frequently criticized aspect of systemic reform is the apparent lack of connection between state reform efforts and state funding policies.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Carnegie Forum on Education and the Economy. (1986). A nation prepared: Teachers for the 21st century. Washington, DC: Author.

Clune, W. H. , & White, P. A. (1988). School-based management: Institutional variation, implementation, and issues for further research. New Brunswick, NJ: Center for Policy Research in Education.

Elmore, R. F. (1987). Reform and the culture of authority in schools. Educational Administration Quarterly, 23(4), 60-78.

Firestone, W. A. , Rosenblum, S. , Bader, B. D. , & Massell, D. (1991). Education reform from 1983 to 1990: State action and district response. New Brunswick, NJ: Consortium for Policy Research in Education.

Fuhrman, S. H. , Clune, W. H. , & Elmore, R. F. (1988). Research on education reform: Lessons on the implementation of policy. Teachers College Record, 90(2), 237-257.

Holmes Group. (1986). Tomorrow's teachers. East Lansing, MI: Author.

Kearns, D. L. (1988). An education recovery plan for America. Phi Delta Kappan, 69(8), 565-570. Minnesota Department of Education House File 350, chap. 224 art. 7 § 27.

Murphy, J. (1990). The educational reform movement of the 1980s: A comprehensive analysis. In J. Murphy (Ed.), The educational reform movement of the 1980s: Perspective and cases (pp. 3-55). Berkeley, CA: McCutchan.

National Commission for Excellence in Teacher Education. (1985). A call for change in teacher education. Washington, DC: Author.

10.

Smith, M. , & O'Day, J. (1991). Systemic school reform. In S. Fuhrman & B. Malen (Eds.), The politics of curriculum and testing (pp. 233-267). Bristol, PA: Falmer Press.