Quality & standards, growth & change

In recent years, schools have come to enjoy an increasing measure of freedom and autonomy. In return, stakeholders in education are demanding new forms of accountability. To this end, schools need new tools for self-evaluation. The third prerequisite for the paradigm shift to become “learning institutions” are new approaches in the field of staff development. This hands-on volume with contributions from school developers and educational practitioners covers all of these aspects, based on the experience of the International Network of Innovative School Systems (INIS). The network, founded in 1997, brings together schools from Canada, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Scotland and Switzerland. In these countries, a wide range of tools for self-evaluation has been put into practice. They are documented in the first part of this volume. A theoretical framework for understanding educational accountability, developed by the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (Toronto), is used to provide context for presenting the accountability tools developed in INIS schools. The third part highlights innovative approaches to training educators.