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Standards-based assessments of educational institutions have long been excoriated by academics and practitioners, who assume the pervasiveness of US and UK models. This valuable contribution to the literature explodes this myth and reveals their heterogeneity.

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"Although standards-based reform emerged in the United States and the United Kingdom, the idea has spread across the world, as an approach to systemic reform. It might appear that there is a world-wide "tsunami" of standards-based reform that will standardize and homogenize the educational system across the globe. This volume makes it very clear, however, that there is no one approach to standards-based reform and countries change - there is a danger in paying attention to its evolution and impact in only one context. That´s what makes this volume so valuable. Louis Volante has drawn together descriptions from a wide range of countries, all involved in large-scale reform and using standards and assessments as part of their process. What becomes very obvious is that the language may be the same but the words reflect different contexts and can represent very different ideals, values, and processes. I´m sure you will find this book as interesting and challenging as I have - a gem that pushes your thinking and does not allow readers to remain neutral." (Lorna Earl)

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PART I: INTRODUCTION: 1. Educational Reform, Standards, and School Leadership; Louis Volante .- PART II: INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES: 2. Responsibility in a High-Accountability System: Leading Schools in England; Daniel Muijs .- 3. Instructional Leadership in the Era of No Child Left Behind: Perspectives from the United States; Anthony H. Normore and Jeffrey S. Brooks .- 4. Educational Leadership in the Context of Low-Stakes Accountability: The Canadian Perspective; Don Klinger and Hana Saab .- 5. Pathways of Educational Leadership: Monitoring and Developing Skill Levels Among Educational Leaders in Australia; Patrick Griffin and Esther Care .- 6. The Shape and Shaping of School Leadership in Aotearoa New Zealand; Lester Flockton .- 7. Policy and Practice in Swedish Education, Assessment, and School Leadership; Christina Wikstr ö m .- 8: Standardization, Deregulation, and School Administration Reform in Japan; Jun Hirata .- 9. School Leadership, Accountability, and Assessment Reform in Hong Kong; Huen Yu and Wai Ming Yu .- 10. Leadership in Qatar´s Educational Reform; Sonia Ben Jaafar .- PART III: CONCLUSION: 11. Thoughts on School Leadership Policy, Practice, and Future Inquiry; Louis Volante and Lorna Earl . Index.

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