The paper starts with the analysis of educational innovation understood as a participated social process arising from initiatives developed in schools by teachers aiming at improving the quality of education. Every school responds in a specific and differentiated way to these change attempts, as school conditions and contexts are different. The paper argues that certain conditions can contribute to the sustainability and dissemination of innovations, while others can obstruct or make this process difficult. This problematic is analysed within the context of Good Hope (Boa Esperanza), an institutional programme developed in Portugal from 1998/99 to 2000/01. This programme tried to encourage school innovations, emphasizing self-evaluation as a facilitating strategy for change and curriculum innovation. The paper highlights the strategic importance of self-evaluation, given its role for the promotion of teachers' personal and professional autonomy and development, as well as for school development as a learning organization.