School improvement in an era of change

Abstract

During its relatively short history, school improvement as an approach to educational change has passed through ‘three ages’. Although the intellectual background to school improvement can be traced back to the work of Kurt Lewin in the immediate post war period, it was only in the late 1970s and early 1980s that it took shape as a practical approach to educational change. Many of the ‘first age of school improvement’ initiatives were ‘free floating’. There was a focus on individual strategies such as organisational change, school self-evaluation, the role of leadership, and of external support. These initiatives were loosely connected to student learning, were too fragmented in conception and application, and therefore struggled to impact upon classroom practice. As a consequence, these ‘first age’ initiatives did not match the criteria previously outlined for authentic school improvement.

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