Balancing Trust and Accountability? The Assessment for Learning Programme in Norway

This report explores the development of implementation strategies used to enhance the programme“Assessment for Learning – 2010-2014” in Norwegian schools. Norway’s educational governance ishighly decentralised, with 428 municipalities and 19 counties responsible for implementing educationactivities, organising and operating school services, allocating resources and ensuring quality improvementand development of their schools. This case study is based on56 interviews with 98 key actors andstakeholders in the Norwegian education system, as well as analysis of key policy and legal documents anda range of media articles. Key findings include the importance of clear communication betweengovernance levels and a high degree of trust between stakeholders the need for a clear understanding ofprogramme goals, the role of learning networks between schools to aid the exchange of knowledge andprovide peer support during the implementation process. Innovative forms of capacity building were ofparticular importance for the smaller municipalities, who reported being overextended by the continualstream of policy changes and struggling with prioritising activities. The case study also provides a series ofrecommendations for improvement.