School autonomy reform and public education in Australia: implications for social justice

The renewed commitment to school autonomy reform in Australia is based on the view that it will drive up academic standards. There remains, however, little conclusive evidence to support this view. Simply instating the structural changes to bring about greater autonomy for schools within public education systems across the world has not led consistently to an improvement in academic outcomes. Indeed, in some systems, this reform is associated with increasing social injustices. As Australian education is engaging in new iterations of this reform at federal and state levels, it is both urgent and timely to reconsider the relationship between school autonomy and social justice. This paper provides a review of largely Australian-based research concerning school autonomy reform within public education. It considers how such reform has supported and detracted from social justice outcomes in relation to political representation, cultural recognition and economic redistribution. The paper’s contribution to the field is theoretical in presenting a multidimensional account of the social justice implications of school autonomy policy and practice in Australia.