Democratization and Educational Decentralization in Spain: A Twenty Year Struggle for Reform. Country Studies: Education Reform and Management Publication Series.

In little more than 2 decades following the death of General Francisco Franco, Spain celebrated its transition from the most centralized to one of the most decentralized nations in Europe--in government and education. The objective of the study described in this report was to describe and analyze the strengths and weaknesses of a complex and comprehensive reform that ultimately resulted in a successful but uneasy transfer of authority and financial resources from the center to the regions. A conventional field-study method to gather data was conducted on six occasions between 1987 and 1997. More than 200 individuals were interviewed, including university scholars, senior Ministry of Education officers, regional educational managers, school directors, and teachers. Results can provide useful guidelines for other nations attempting to decentralize their educational system. Recommendations, based on Spain's experience with reform, include negotiating decentralization between the system center and regions; letting a court decide disagreements; making changes incrementally; transferring physical resources, such as school buildings and equipment, in good condition; redirecting reforms; keeping quality managers on the job; balancing funding between rich and poor regions; depopulating the ministry of education; developing educational leaders; adequately funding the educational expansion; provide strong political support; sharing vision; and governing by laws and not personalities. (RT)