The role played by the state government in Victoria, Australia, in public education changed considerably when the Labour Party took office in the early 1980s. Seeking to redress social imbalances and inequities, the government sought broad decentralization of decision making in education, with an increased role for teachers, parents, and students. Six policy documents were developed by the Ministry of Education covering decision making, planning for school improvement, the status and roles of the newly reorganized state and regional boards of education and the local school councils, and curriculum development and planning. This paper reviews these developments to provide a context for a symposium on curricular development and planning in Victoria. (PGD)