The Formation of Regional Boards and the Devolution of Victorian State Education

Abstract

This paper discusses a research project, conducted over 1985 and 1986, which studied a regional board of education in Victoria. It describes how the board members have constructed and developed their understanding of their roles and functions and how, in such a process, they have negotiated a collective identity for the regional board. The research raises a number of issues concerning the nature and scope of democratic governance: in particular, the relationship between the regional bureaucracy and the regional board, the problem of representativeness and, more generally, the tension between representative and participatory democracy.