The purpose of the NUT study was to work together with a group of schools to develop a school-friendly but robust approach to self-evaluation. Six groups of stakeholders in a small sample of schools were asked to identify the key characteristics of a 'good' school and then to rate a set of externally derived criteria of school performance. This study and subsequent follow-up are reported in Schools Must Speak for Themselves.

Indicators, or other measures of school performance, do not work in isolation; each of them is a fragment of a much larger picture. The attempts to capture this broader picture have taken the shape of building models or frameworks. The framework arising from the NUT project first appears to be defined simply by ten themes but then is presented in terms of four key elements: an overarching philosophy; procedural guidelines; a set of criteria or 'indicators;' and a tool kit. Although we would take issue with the way various terms such as 'criteria' and 'indicators' are defined and used, the book combines content and process in a frame unified by a way of thinking about assessment as a component of school improvement.

Schools Must Speak for Themselves introduces the tool kit in one chapter and then devotes a entire chapter to it, organized around the ten themes which emerged from the NUT study. MacBeath presents a description, with examples, of quantitative evidence, qualitative evidence and the methods and instruments that could be used for assessing each of the elements that define the theme. Generally speaking, the material is useful and practical, with helpful examples to illustrate the methods. However, there is some confusion in the presentation of quantitative versus qualitative evidence, and a need for greater semantic clarity of terms.

Implicit in this book is the underlying importance of values, more particularly, the importance of measuring what you value. Values are at the heart of any debate on schooling, and by extension, the assessment of schooling. Self-assessment helps the school to focus on what its stakeholders value most, and not to be driven solely by the goals of the system.

The key question after reading this book is whether their author has made the case for school self-assessment and contributed to our understanding of this policy approach. The answer to both questions, in a word, is yes. School self-assessment is a key building block for school improvement and any school leader who takes the time to read this book will find that the time was well spent.