Together, the four papers of this collection provide much food for thought concerning the policy issues surrounding National Assessment in the UK. Two of the contributions are by the Assessment Policy Task Group of the British Educational Research Association who have produced the book. All four papers clearly demonstrate the potential of research to be a powerful instrument in policy-making, offering a detailed and sustained critique of current national assessment developments in the various UK education systems and their likely implications. This is a book that sets out clearly the arguments for and against national assessment in the UK and leaves its readers in no doubt concerning the issues at stake.