This article looks at policy for quality assurance and evaluation in Scotland, its history and more recent developments, and in particular, at the emphasis on school self-evaluation. It examines the history of the concept, its constituent elements and the role of the Inspectorate in establishing it. Further, the article discusses the Scottish…

Suggests that many of the criticisms and failures of implementation of "Primary Education in Scotland" (1965) arose through lack of understanding of how the memorandum was written and of exactly what its recommendations entailed. Concentrates on how the document was made by obtaining oral evidence from some of its authors. (NEC)