ABSTRACT
The themes of devolution and self-managing schools might suggest a centrifugal redistribution of power. It is proposed in this chapter that, from a New Zealand perspective, the redistribution of power is ambiguous, and that the relationships between devolution, democracy, efficiency, effectiveness, quality and equity are problematic, particularly in an acknowledged pluralistic state. The chapter will demonstrate the problematic ambiguity for leaders of New Zealand schools, on the basis of five features of the New Zealand Education scene in 1993.
