Elaine M. Walker, Education Policy Analysis Archives
August 4, 2002
In recent decades, decentralization has become a popular education reform strategy. It assumes that educational improvement will occur when the makers of decisions are close to the decisions' impact. In theory, school-based management (SBM), a method of decentralization, also brings parents, teachers and concerned citizens into the decision-making fold. But when put into practice in New Jersey's poorest school districts, it only muddied the governance waters and diluted accountability, writes author Elaine Walker. In her study of SBM in thirty New Jersey districts, Walker found that: 1) state power and authority usurped local autonomy; 2) districts and SBM teams were given little room to build capacity; 3) SBM teams became teacher-dominated, thereby minimizing parental and community participation in decision-making; and 4) without clear guidance from the state, SBM engendered conflict among the groups whose voices it was intended to amplify. The paper concludes with policy options that states and localities ought to consider before jumping on the SBM bandwagon. This brief report is available at http://epaa.asu.edu/epaa/v10n33.html.
