ABSTRACT
Scotland’s approach to monitoring standards and improving quality in schools is based on the belief that ‘the most effective way of improving the quality of education for individual pupils is to expect schools to take responsibility for their own quality assurance by evaluating their performance and making the necessary changes’ (HMI 1996). This belief means that national standards are monitored in a variety of ways and the results disseminated to schools with the aim of encouraging schools to reflect upon and improve aspects of their own practice. As in many countries, a prime concern in Scotland is with pupils’ attainments at various stages of their school careers. More unusual, perhaps, is a concern too with certain school processes which are seen as contributing to attainment. These include a positive school ethos, effective school development planning and, associated with these, consultative management styles.
