A thorough examination of the characteristics of a high- performing school, written by Sir Cyril Taylor (Chairman of the Specialist Schools Trust) and Conor Ryan (senior adviser to Tony Blair on Education).

Sir Cyril Taylor, Conor Ryan

1: What makes a great school?; 1: How does your school measure up on the NFER criteria?; 1: Improvement techniques; 2: Starting out: the transition from primary to secondary school; 3: The drive for continuous improvement; 4: How to turn around a failing school; 5: Accountability, transparency and choice: the value of specialism; 6: Using data to improve performance; 7: Teamwork: teachers, trainees and teaching assistants; 8: Broad and balanced learning; 9: Term times, timetables and changing classrooms; 10: Discipline and attendance; 11: Inspection and audit; 12: Provision for children with special educational needs; 13: Schools helping schools: the value of partnerships; 14: Turning the rhetoric of school choice into reality; 15: Lessons from abroad; 16: Good schools manage their finances well and learn how to raise sponsorship; 17: New ways of learning using ICT and structural change; 18: Can we transform our schools?