The formation of hypotheses and generation of a theory to explain and predict the outcomes of educational reforms based on the concept of school reform cycles is the purpose of this paper. Two complementary hypotheses are proposed to explain the success or failure of educational reforms. The first hypothesis is based on an inverse relationship between restructuring and allocation of power and resources. It states that reforms requiring the most extensive restructuring in education, government, and/or society have the least possibility of enduring. The second hypothesis, based on unresolved societal problems, states that reforms will recur if the problem requires a restructuring in education, government, and/or society that cannot be accomplished. An overview of educational reform in the United States, such as movements to change school accreditation requirements, student evaluation, teacher pay plans, and resource allocation, is presented to test the hypotheses. The discussion supports the usefulness of the hypotheses in generating theory to predict the success of future reform efforts. (21 references) (LMI)