Trade-Offs Between the Top-Down and Bottom-Up School Education Management Models: The Implementation of School Development Planning in Western China

In the 1990s, numerous primary and secondary schools in China began experimental exploration and research on the implementation of school development planning (SDP). However, there has been a lack of self-criticism and reflection on the actual implementation situations and changes in SDP's concepts in the participating schools. This study assessed the development and operation of the SDP project from the Basic Education in Western Areas Project (BEWAP). Through questionnaire surveys and case studies, the research showed that the SDP project helped schools, families, and communities establish an effective and quick-responding mechanism, which in turn improved the development of school education, promoted schools to utilize the areas' available resources, and helped the development of school education and the growth of children. However, we also discovered that the degree of economic development, education management mode, school development evaluation method, and other factors in the areas where participating schools are located constrained the effectiveness and sustainability of SDP implementation.