Approximately 400 superintendents, specialists and consultants, principals, and teachers in 63 San Francisco Bay Area school districts were surveyed by questionnaires to identify (1) critical decision processes in the field of education and (2) the information sources and kinds of information which are used to support decision making and planning. The main results of the study include: (1) The most frequently used information sources are colleagues, principals, contacts at professional meetings, superintendents, and curriculum specialists; (2) modes of communication tend to be informal; (3) in 24 areas of educational planning, superintendents and principals average the highest levels of involvement in decision making; (4) the five decisions regarded as most important are decisions to hire new teachers, terminate teaching personnel, recommend and install new curricular innovations, and alter student teacher ratios; (5) lack of time to study problems, excessive focus on financial aspects, need to satisfy many groups, lack of research support, and failure to define goals are the major stumbling blocks to effective decision making; and (6) according to superintendents, principals and then teachers are the primary sources of innovation. A related document is EA 002 090. (HW)