Introduction

This chapter traces the history of school autonomy reform in Australian public education, positioning it within global education reform movements. It examines the diverse implementation of autonomy across Australian states, from Victoria's self-managing schools to New South Wales' (NSW) Local Schools, Local Decisions and Western Australia's (WA's) Independent Public Schools initiative. The chapter highlights how these reforms, driven by economic rationalism, choice and competition, have led to the erosion of central support structures, disproportionately affecting rural and remote schools. It discusses the resulting intensification of teacher and principal workloads, growing resource inequalities and increasing stratification within and between schools. Critiquing the neoliberal emphasis on choice and accountability, the chapter demonstrates how these policies have exacerbated educational inequities. Against this backdrop, it introduces the three-year Australian Research Council project underpinning the book, which explored school autonomy reform in Victoria, NSW and WA. The study sought to understand how autonomy is conceptualised by key education stakeholders and enacted in public schools. The chapter outlines the study's aims, methods and theoretical frameworks before concluding with an overview of the book's chapters.