Fullan, Michael

Michael G. Fullan (1940–) is widely considered an international authority on educational reform. His work has led to the creation of several partnerships designed to promote educational reform and school improvement. In his international work with school systems, teachers' federations, development institutes, and government agencies, he seeks to help individuals and institutions organize change initiatives, accomplish goals, and become exceptional industry leaders by using the most current theories and by incorporating case examples of large-scale transformation.

His change philosophy offers both novice and experienced leaders insights into the dynamics of change and presents a unique and imaginative approach for navigating the intricacies of the change process. His eight major theories (lessons) of change encourage persons to realize that what matters cannot be mandated, to recognize that change is a journey not a blueprint, to understand that problems can be our friends, to understand that vision and strategic planning come later in the process, to know that individualism and collectivism must have equal power, to understand that neither centralization nor decentralization works, to recognize that connection with the wider environment is crucial for success, and to understand that every person is a change agent.

Fullan cautions that school reform is a timeconsuming and long-range project driven by mission statements that integrate vision of basic principles along with personal and organizational insights and that implementation of change is a project not an event. Fullan contends that for change to take place, people must learn about the new policies and innovations. He also posits that the best mode for this learning is through professional learning communities in which leaders and teachers work together to focus on student learning as one of the key elements of largescale reform. Fullan also advocates that the concept of sustainability is critical to all change initiatives.

Fullan received his degrees in sociology (bachelor's, master's and doctorate) from the University of Toronto, where he went on to serve as a professor, the chair of the sociology department, the assistant academic director at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), and Dean Emeritus of the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto. Other credits include policy implementation adviser to the Minister of Education and Training (Ontario) on the Report of the Royal Commission on Learning. Fullan is currently leading a research team on a project based in England titled the “National Literacy and Numeracy Strategy.”

Fullan has published widely on the topic of change. Some of his writings include What's Worth Fighting For, The New Meaning of Educational Change, Leading in a Culture of Change (2002 Book of the Year by the National Staff Development Council), and Change Forces With a Vengeance. His most recent book, The Moral Imperative of School Leadership was released in March 2003. His books are published in multiple languages and are available in several countries.