Commitment‐‐building approaches to school restructuring: lessons from a longitudinal study

Government‐initiated school restructuring began in the Canadian province of British Columbia in 1989. It was accompanied by significant commitments of new funding for schools and high levels of awareness on the part of central officials about the requirements for effective policy implementation. The content of this restructing mirrored efforts in many other jurisdictions but was exceptionally comprehensive. Results of a four‐year study which examined the processes and consequences of restructuring in local schools are summarized in this paper. The paper identifies six key lessons about productive restructuring processes and outlines a promising image of schools capable of such restructuring. Also proposed is an ‘educative’ approach by governments toward educational reform policy and its implementation.