The Effective Schools Pilot Project, conceived in fall 1983, was designed to improve selected schools by focusing resources to assist six elementary schools in developing strategies for self-assessment and renewal through participatory decision-making. Phase I of the project (1983-1984) resulted in a set of research-based school improvement plans supported by a majority of the faculty at each school. This report evaluates Phase II (1984-85) of this multiyear project, assessing the effects that the project has had on student achievement, the perceptions of the various actors regarding content and implementation, and the overall success of the schoolS in implementing their improvement plans. Accordingly, three different kinds of data were collected for comparative analysis between project and control schools: (1) Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS) data for reading, mathematics, and language arts; (2) data from a standardized instrument, Describing Your School's Characteristics (DYSC) to measure the perception of staff and principals regarding their school's progress toward their set goals; and (3) extensive questionnaire data from staff and principals concerning their perceptions of the project itself. Findings suggest that project schools have made a promising start toward improving student achievement, but that several areas still require immediate attention: leadership, governance, management, facilitation, monitoring and data collection, staff development, academic and organizational climate, and parental involvement. (TE)