Assessment reform past, present and future

This chapter introduces the edited volume by providing an overview of assessment and related policy and implementation issues. It starts with a discussion of the complex nature of assessment and how it fulfils different functions for different stakeholders. These functions have waxed and waned in significance over time, as illustrated by the brief review of assessment in various historical periods. The chapter then identifies some of the challenges and tensions that are inherent in the process of creating a coherent set of policies and practices. Finally, it outlines the contents of the rest of the book, linking the individual chapters to the concepts and issues that have been presented. Copyright © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V..