This study was designed to investigate the perceptions of one school community concerning their secondary school's curriculum innovations. The thesis begins with a consideration of some recent major societal changes which have impacted on the lives of many secondary students. It is argued that while a far larger proportion of students are staying at school longer, secondary schools have continued to cater for a small percentage of their students, the academically oriented ones. The late nineteen seventies and early eighties saw attempts by some schools to develop relevant curricula for their clients. In South Australia a few secondary schools made considerable changes in an effort to cater more effectively for student needs. It was in this climate of widespread concern for secondary education and reports of school based curriculum development that the secondary staff of Cleve Area School embarked on a curriculum review that led to the implementation of several curriculum innovations in February 1986. Two of the major innovations included the introduction of ten week courses and vertically grouping classes. The research phase of this study was conducted during 1988 and sought to discover what the current secondary students, staff and parents' perceptions were of these innovations. The research sub- questions focused on curriculum flexibility, diversity and balance. While innovations such as those implemented at Cleve were perceived to be more effectively meeting the needs of their students, the data also indicate that there are aspects of the innovations which warrant further consideration.