SCHOOL AUTONOMY REFORM IN CHINA: THE VOICE OF THE PRINCIPAL

China has experienced a decentralization reform since the 1980s. However, a trend of "re-centralization" in education has been observed by researchers around 2000. Though some researches explained this oscillation from different perspectives, there is still a lack of empirical study at the school level focusing on how autonomy has been interpreted and implemented in practice. This study investigates the objective policy arrangements under this "re-centralization" trend and the subjective perception of principals towards the policy shifts. Based on principal interviews in 12 senior secondary schools in two cities in China, we find the arrangements and implementation of school autonomy are deeply embedded in the school context. Both the local development level and the school performance reframe the policy implementation at the school level. Moreover, both examination and market pressure play critical roles in this mechanism, defining the schools' factual decision making in some key domains. In the discussion, we highlight the need to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the current policy of school autonomy through well-aimed pathways.