ABSTRACT
The traditional Austrian system of school governance has been characterized as a model of bureaucratic-professional double regulation. Since the beginning of the 1990s, however, there has been a growing debate about modernizing the governance of school systems in German-speaking countries. The changes introduced by way of the three phases of school modernization have presented new demands on individual schools to act as semi-autonomous actors in their local environment and, thus, have certainly put pressure on the traditional concept of the role of school leadership. In Austria there are no formalized tools for teacher assessment. School leaders play a central role in effectively implementing an evidence-based governance regime since they are important gatekeepers. The revised Austrian School Education Act strongly emphasizes school leaders role in assuring that school quality is appropriately and regularly assessed, as well as that they obtained data are used for quality improvement not only at the classroom but also at the school level.
