David, Jane L. (May 1989). Synthesis of Research on School-Based Management. Educational Leadership. 46(8), 45-52.

These are obviously old pieces, but well worth perusal as a beginning point to a limited historical understanding of how "who decides curriculum" has been shifting in the public schools in the past 20-25 years. In the literature, one finds many advantages listed for school-based, instead of district-based, management--greater sense of ownership on the part of teachers and school staff; the ability of the management to respond to that school's student body's needs and skills; wiser expenditure of funds again based on what that school in particular needs, many times in great contrast to other schools in the district (Oswald). In addition to those advantages, David also recounts a school in Baton Rouge, Louisiana that used school-based management as a tool for desegregation.

David notes that in the 1960's and '70's, school-based management was used primarily to bring authority to a local community in a general way; whereas in the late 1980's, when she wrote this article, it was aimed at improving the quality of education and teacher satisfaction at specific schools. According to David, it all boils down to teachers' having (1) financial autonomy (at least to a significant degree), (2) autonomy in staffing decisions (choosing what positions will be available and who will fill them), and (2) curricular decision-making autonomy shared, in part, with students, parents, and other community members. Oswald sites difficulties with school-based management that hinge on the balance of power between teachers who want to participate, and what to do about teachers who want simply to teach their classes without managerial responsibilities. David's research points to the great satisfaction and even "exuberance" that teachers enjoy as a result of "real authority," and the strength that has to overcome political difficulties and even reluctance on the part of many teachers.

Assessments of various schools' experience with school-based management show that the two major pitfalls are (1) "substituting shared decision-making for authority," and (2) granting authority without leadership or support from the district. David concludes the review by noting that the shift to school-based management is a lengthy process--five to ten years according to research available at the time of her writing. Further, she writes that much still was to be learned about how the new management should be implemented based simply on observing and assessing the processes underway then.