The purpose of this review is twofold--to summarize the major models of educational change and to present a series of generalizations based on recent empirical studies about educational change. In the first section, previous reviews of the change literature are presented in order to establish a broad perspective concerning research in this area. Three dimensions of change--processes, influences, and effects--derived from previous research and from the empirical studies cited in Section 2 are proposed as a succinct means for classifying the wide variety of research on change. Four models of change--problem-solving, social interaction, research-development-diffusion, and linkage--are described and compared using the three dimensions. Studies associated with the models are cited and a summary of the models is attempted by using conceptualizations about change strategies and images of practitioners. In Section 2, over 100 empirical studies completed since 1970 are analyzed in order to provide the basis for a series of generalizations and inferences about change. Each generalization or inference is judged as "firm,""Moderately speculative," or "speculative." These judgments accompany each generalization. A bibliography is included. (Author/IRT)