ABSTRACT
The importance of context in educational change is paramount. Curriculum development, pedagogical reform, philosophical stance and continual professional development are just a few examples of those issues which are susceptible to the contextual circumstances within which an educational establishment, be it school or university, has to work on a day-to-day basis. Context has a disproportionate influence on the effectiveness of reform. Even schools within a few hundred yards from each other can legitimately hold radically different views on many issues, views which will be reflected in the structures and the processes which they will use to fulfil their perceived roles.
