This country review offers an independent analysis of major issues facing the use of school resources in Portugal from an international perspective. It provides a description of national policies, an analysis of strengths and challenges and options for possible future approaches. The analysis focuses on the process of decentralisation of school…

As a result of the proliferation of standardized testing and academic standards, there are new expectations for teachers and the role(s) they play in improving student learning and achievement (Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 1999; Garet et al., 2001). However, little is known about teachers who initiate positive changes outside of their own classrooms and…

Subject departments form the primary organizational unit of the high school. The chapters in this book illuminate the ways in which departments shape the views and practice of individual teachers, serve as a locus of professional community, and express institutional and social values. The book examines the implications of subject affiliation and…