Comparing school improvement programmes in England and Canada

The process of school improvement still remains something of a 'black box'. While there are ample descriptions of different approaches to school improvement there are fewer studies of a comparative nature. This article provides a comparison of two well-established school improvement programmes in England and Canada. The Improving the Quality of All Project (IQEA) in England and the Manitoba School Improvement Programme (MSIP) in Canada have each demonstrated considerable success in their work with schools. The article traces the development of IQEA and MSIP and analyses their different approaches to school improvement. This comparative analysis reveals that there are common elements that the two projects share and that the area of greatest synergy lies in their ability to encourage teacher collaboration within schools and to foster professional learning communities.