Purposeful Restructuring: Lessons from Effective Schools Research and Practice

The purpose of this chapter is to examine the lessons learned from effective schools research and practice and to discuss how they could be helpful in guiding current efforts to restructure schools. As discussed earlier, effective schools programs and restructuring are similar, because they both focus on the transformative process of schooling in relation to outputs. This is not to say that inputs are not important. Studies have documented that principals and staff in more effective schools play an active role in securing additional resources as well as asserting more authority in school site personnel decisions than do their colleagues in less effective schools ( Venezky and Winfield, 1979 ; Glenn, 1981 ; Leithwood and Montgomery, 1982; Hallinger and Murphy, 1987b ; Rosenholtz, 1989 ). Restructuring proposals frequently call for more autonomy in staff selection and for additional resources that will allow more release time for staff to participate in learning opportunities, planning and curriculum development. Restructuring plans built on the concept of parental choice through vouchers or magnet schools would radically alter the make-up of student inputs into the transformative process. The essence of effective schools programs and restructuring efforts, however, lies in altering the transformative process. It is in this regard that educators and policy makers pursuing restructuring can benefit from effective schools research and practice. The following sections of this chapter highlight some of the lessons to be learned that could lead to purposeful restructuring in ways that create a climate for learning and achievement in schools.