ABSTRACT
In England a high stakes accountability system – Ofsted – operates. Ofsted continues to perform a critical function by identifying failure in the system so that no child attends a poor school. Common features include school self-review, checks on the curriculum, national monitoring of data to look for trends as this contribution to the survey by Erika Lofstrom, University of Helsinki indicates. Rectors have a significant responsibility in enabling school development, and this is seen as the way to sound performance. The focus of accountability in an education system depends on the values and principles underpinning the education service. In some education services access for all to a broad curriculum is paramount, in others segregated schooling with different curricula for different learners is acceptable.
