ABSTRACT
In recent years there has been growing public interest in achieving the high-performance education system needed to cope with global competition. As public attention has become increasingly focused on the outcomes of the education system, politicians, policymakers and education practitioners have developed a quality assurance (QA) mechanism designed to improve the effectiveness of education in Hong Kong. This drive for quality has the twin purposes of educational development and increased public accountability by means of inspections and self-assessment by the schools. It is believed that the incentives of accountability and market competition will result in a higher performance of the education system. Similar concern about quality has become very evident in the educational discourse all over the world.
