Learning About System Renewal

Introduction

The introduction of the Education Reform Act (ERA) in 1988 in England was a watershed event, not just in that country but internationally. The education policies introduced by the government of Margaret Thatcher constituted a particularly large and dramatic instance of a particular approach to educational change based primarily on a belief in competition and information as the primary drivers of improvement. In essence, the changes made in the United Kingdom in and around 1988 had the following logic:

• The belief that competition in the economy as a whole drives efficiency and improvement could be applied to schools as well, so that competition among schools would lead to better outcomes for students.
• In order for schools to compete, individual ...