The increasing call for local control and accountability in United States' schools has resulted in a rapid bid by public schools to decentralize. Schools and school systems therefore need to acquire the skills - such as research, assessment and evaluation - necessary to make local control work, as these skills are not significant elements of the current teacher preparation curriculum.

Techniques that have been used successfully by schools to implement and maintain local control programmes and policies are illustrated in this book to assist professionals involved in the decentralization process.