Whilst Hong Kong's return to Chinese sovereignty in 1997 has influenced education in various ways, major reforms perceived as promoting mainland control have been resisted. For two decades, Hong Kong's educational autonomy under the 'one country, two systems' formula was thus largely maintained. This changed radically with the response to the…

During as near as three decades after the political changes in Slovakia its system of education has undergone many reforms. As an integral part of them have been changes regarding school autonomy as it influences quality of education. To achieve an optimal model of autonomy offered to schools is very difficult, as appropriate level of autonomy is…

In England the balance of responsibilities between national and local government for the governance of education is changing. Relationships between schools are shifting and new structures, groups and alliances are being created in response to national policy. The article is part of a project to understand how the new local education landscapes are…

The executive summary a case study of two authorizers--Denver Public Schools and the District of Columbia (D.C.) Public Charter School Board--both with strong outcomes in many areas and a high or growing charter enrollment. For each, it summarizes how their approach to authorizing has shaped the way they address the issues that arise as charter…

This report provides a case study of two authorizers--Denver Public Schools and the District of Columbia (D.C.) Public Charter School Board--both with strong outcomes in many areas and a high or growing charter enrollment. For each, it summarizes how their approach to authorizing has shaped the way they address the issues that arise as charter…

In 2009 the Los Angeles Unified School District passed the Public School Choice Initiative, which aimed to give students in the lowest performing schools educational options. LA Pilot Schools are one option students and their families have when choosing a school in LAUSD. These schools boast small size, autonomy, greater accountability,…

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) passed the Public School Choice Initiative in 2009, with the aim of providing students in the lowest performing schools educational options. LA Pilot Schools represent one alternative students and their families have when choosing a school within LAUSD. The mission of LA Pilot Schools is to provide a…

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) passed the Public School Choice Initiative in 2009, with the aim of providing students in the lowest performing schools educational options. LA Pilot Schools represent one alternative students and their families have when choosing a school within LAUSD. The mission of LA Pilot Schools is to provide a…

This article presents findings on the essential strategies required at the school site and the relevant people responsible for the effective implementation of school-based financial management in Malaysia. Many lessons have been learned since more than a decade of the school-based financial management reform in Malaysia through the establishment…

Following his previous article in this journal on the centralisation of power in English education post the 1988 Education Reform Act ("The Era of Centralisation", "FORUM", 50[2], pp. 255-261), the author considers the apparent turn to school autonomy central to the Conservative Educational Revolution. He argues that the power…

Although eternally debated, the issue of autonomy in higher education is rarely analysed in its complexity. To address this issue, this article uses an analytical matrix which combines the distinction between substantive and procedural autonomy and the distinction between HEI governing bodies, academic professions and individual academics. This…

Addressed are the issues of government/school relationship and the increasing centralization of postsecondary education. Drawing from the experiences of foreign countries, the value of institutional differentiation, and the need for planning and autonomous action for differentiation, coordination, and change are discussed. (JMD)

The current structure of governance and decision making in Swedish higher education and the effects of recent national reform on perceived and actual autonomy at the central, regional, and local levels are discussed. An initial desire for more decentralized decision making has turned to increasing demand for more guidance by central organizations.…

The transition from an elite university to a mass university has characterized modern university life. The purely quantitative development has been accompanied by a number of changes in the decisionmaking system in higher education. No systematic comparative studies exist of the development of the decisionmaking system. A project is under way at…