Policy Aspects: How to Change Practice and in What Direction

The ASSIST-ME project has a dual aim: (1) to provide a research base on the effective uptake of formative and summative assessment for inquiry-based, competence-oriented Science, Technology and Mathematics (STM) education and (2) to use this research base to give policy-makers and other stakeholders guidelines for ensuring that assessment enhances learning in STM education. This chapter describes how the second aim, the policy-oriented aspects, was dealt with in ASSIST-ME. It describes the establishment of National Stakeholder Panels (NSP) through the use of social network analysis as well as the work and outcomes of the national NSPs. In a wider perspective, it analyses how research results have and can influence STM education, both the educational practices and the political climate and decisions framing education. At this point, the chapter goes beyond ASSIST-ME and draws upon other project experiences across Europe. Finally, the policy recommendations for the transformation process based on the ASSIST-ME experiences will be put forward.