"This volume addresses three research issues of national and international concern: (i) the setting of educational standards of achievement; (ii) the routes by which those standards are obtained, and; (iii) their relative comparabilities Well-respected, international researchers actively involved in the development of assessment tests offer wide-ranging points of view on educational standards, including National Curriculum testing in Britain and the comparability of standards of achievement across a global range of countries. Questions raised and discussed include: is a common educational standard a possibility?; what are 'international' standards?; how do British standards compare from school to Higher Education?; and is it possible to compare standards in different British Higher Education establishments?" "The volume has been arranged into three categories for ease of access: international, national, and test specific. Across these categories, however, a common theme emerges for discussion - namely, the movement in many countries to establish outcomes-oriented standards for education. But is this becoming an almost global preoccupation with quality control models concerned solely with outcomes at the expense of processes?" "With a number of interesting and insightful points of view proffered by respected researchers and writers working in the field of educational standards and assessment, this volume represents a broad church, crossing national and international boundaries."--Jacket.