The Effective Schools Program in St. Louis, Missouri, public schools expanded the concept of effective schools developed in Project SHAL (1980-1984). The following five characteristics are considered effective school factors: (1) strong administrative leadership (2) high teacher expectations; (3) positive school climate; (4) total school instructional emphasis; and (5) ongoing student assessment. In the valuation of Project SHAL, each school competed only with itself to achieve progress in implementing the effective schools characteristics and with its own prior test results demonstrating pupil mastery of basic skills. Project SHAL had as a goal the development of a replication model. The replication model field test at Project SHAL schools indicated the following: (1) complex educational change takes time; (2) different school units adopt/adapt change at different rates and with different emphases; (3) school size affects rapidity of change and degree of implementation; (4) amount of effort in planning, preparation, and special training for personnel positively affect implementation; (5) support of central administration is a key element in implementation; (6) the initial effort probably benefits from the halo effect more than later efforts; and (7) in a process of mutual adaptation both school and innovation undergo some adjustments. The replication /implementation model provides a reasonable description of the change process involved in the implementation of effective schools factors in Project SHAL. A SHAL Implementation Assessment Guide is provided as an appendix; answers to the questions posed provide a comprehensive evaluation of the program. (LHW)