Do National Assessments Without Sanctions Make a Difference? The Case of School Inspection in Chile

• In Event: Infrastructure for Accountability Policy and Practice

Abstract

This paper exposes the main results of a study in Chile that examines the enactment of a ‘soft’ governance tool -the school inspection system- which involves a face-to-face
assessment. The research project is a qualitative study following twelve ‘school inspection networks’. This includes a documentary analysis of the delivered school reports (n=12), in-depth interviews with principals and inspectors (n=24). The research findings challenge the effective impact of school inspection, and even though there is an attempt to develop an alternative assessment to high-stakes testing, in practice, while ‘soft accountability’ tools are maintained within the logic of a performance-based accountability framework, it will be limited by the same policy rationale.

Authors

• Lluís Parcerisa, University of Barcelona
  Presenting Author

• Alejandra Falabella, Universidad Alberto Hurtado
  Presenting Author