The study was funded by Human Resources Development Canada and administered by the Canadian Education Association. The 21 schools were selected through an open nomination process. While every school was exemplary in some practices, the schools were not necessarily the 21 best schools in Canada. Successful schools run the gamut in terms of size, organizational structure, communities served, priorities and approaches. Motivated and competent teachers are the single, essential element of successful schools.
Success depends on many factors.
It is acquired only with care and difficulty. It is sustained with constant vigilance and can be easily and rapidly compromised by poor decisions or by changing circumstances that are beyond the control of the school. Almost all the schools studied are conventional in terms of physical facilities, organizational structure, curriculum, student grouping and the activities of teachers and students. The communities that schools serve have little influence on the academic core of those schools. Greater influence is exerted on peripheral subjects, shared values and social goals.