The rules regarding quality assurance in early childhood education differ between mainland Portugal and the autonomous regions of Madeira and the Azores, which have their own education inspectorates (regional education inspectorates). The following information relates to mainland Portugal. 

Responsible bodies

In the internal evaluation of schools, responsibilities are shared between the general council, the headteacher, the teaching council and the administrative council, at their various levels.

Evaluating the educational system and external evaluation of schools is the responsibility of the following departments of the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (MECI): 

• the former Institute of Educational Assessment (IAVE, I.P.), now merged into the Institute for Education, Quality and Evaluation (Instituto da Educação, Qualidade e Avaliação - EduQA, I. P) - Decree-Law No 105/2025, 12 September;
• the Inspectorate-General of Education and Science (IGEC) - Regulatory Decree No 15/2012, 27 January; 
• the Directorate General for Education and Science Statistics (DGEEC) - Regulatory Decree No 13/2012, 20 January.

In Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) for children under three, crèche services are monitored, evaluated, and supervised by the relevant department of the Institute for Social Security, I. P.

Approaches and methods for quality assurance

Teachers

With regard to teachers (early childhood education, primary and secondary school teachers) (in Regulatory Decree No. 26/2012 of 21 February, as currently worded),

• the assessment focuses on the following aspects of performance:
  • academic and pedagogical (60%);
  • involvement in school and relationship with the community (20%); and
  • continuing education and professional development (20%).
• self-evaluation consists of a report designed to involve teachers in identifying opportunities for professional development and in improving teaching processes and pupils’ academic results, through reflection on their teaching practice, focusing on:
  • teaching practice;
  • organised activities;
  • analysis of the results achieved;
  • contribution to the objectives and targets set out in the school’s educational project;
  • training undertaken and its contribution to improving educational practice.

The assessment is carried out by internal assessors, who evaluate the teaching staff member’s activities in relation to the performance criteria listed above, and by external assessors, who evaluate the scientific and pedagogical aspects, including, where applicable, classroom observation.
Classroom observation accounts for 70% of the scientific and pedagogical dimension and is mandatory only when the appraisee: is on probation; is in the 2nd or 4th step of the teaching career; intends to obtain an ‘Excellent’ rating; has obtained an ‘Unsatisfactory’ rating.
For more information on teacher evaluation for career advancement purposes, please consult the Subchapter 8.2 - Conditions of service for teachers working in early childhood and school education.

Headteachers

With regard to headteachers (in Ordinance No. 266/2012, August),

• internal assessment (60%) focuses on:
  • degree of fulfilment of the commitments undertaken in the respective mission statement, which must take into account the results of the implementation of the educational project and the school’s annual activity plan, as well as the management of human, financial and material resources (50%);
  • level of demonstration of leadership skills, strategic vision, management and external representation (30%);
  • continuing professional development undertaken (20%).
• external evaluation (40%) corresponds to the simple arithmetic mean, rounded to three decimal places, assigned to each of the dimensions in the most recent external school evaluation carried out by IGEC.

Schools

With regard to schools (public or private, of various types) (Law No. 31/2002, 20 December, as currently in force),

• the system for the evaluation of non-higher education, approved by Law No. 31/2002, 20 December, as currently worded, applicable to pre-school, primary and secondary education establishments in the public, private, cooperative and solidarity-based sectors, has the following objectives, amongst others:
  • to promote the improvement of the quality of the education system;
  • to ensure educational success;
  • to ensure the credibility of the performance of educational establishments;
  • to promote a culture of continuous improvement; and
  • to participate in international institutions and processes for the evaluation of education systems.

Internal school evaluation (self-evaluation) is based on the following criteria defined at central level:

• the extent to which the educational project has been implemented;
• the level of implementation of activities that contribute to the school development;
• the performance of the administrative and management bodies;
• school success (including the findings of the monitoring of the implementation of curricular measures and of the resources and structures supporting inclusive education, in accordance with Article 33 of Decree-Law No. 54/2018, 5 July, as currently worded);
• cooperation culture a among members of the educational community.

Self-evaluation is one of the areas covered by the reference framework used in the IGEC’s work specifically dedicated to the external evaluation of schools.
Under Decree-Law No. 75/2008, 22 April, as currently worded, applicable to schools in mainland Portugal, in addition to the self-evaluation report, the following are accountability instruments:

1. the annual activity report, drawn up by the director and approved by the general council; and
2. the management accounts, which are of an accounting nature, the report on which is drawn up by the administrative council and approved by the general council.

In the context of external school evaluation, the following are particularly noteworthy (Article 8 of Law No. 31/2002, 20 December, as currently worded):

1. Current learning assessment system
   In accordance with Decree-Law No. 55/2018, 6 July, as currently worded, the various methods of gathering information on learning pursue the following objectives:
   •    to inform and support teaching interventions, adjusting strategies to improve the quality of learning with a view to promoting academic success;
   •    to assess the achievement of the objectives set out in the curriculum;
   •    to certify learning.
   External assessment of learning is based on the Essential Learning Outcomes and comprises:
   •    learning monitoring tests (ModA tests);
   •    final tests in basic education;
   •    national final exams;
   •    artistic aptitude tests, which are part of the assessment in specialised arts courses at secondary level;
   •    vocational aptitude tests, which are part of the assessment in vocational courses. 

For further information on the assessment of learning, please refer to the following sections: 4.3 Assessment in single-structure education, 5.3 Assessment in general upper secondary education and 5.6 Assessment in vocational upper-secondary education.

2.  The activities of the General Inspectorate of Education and Science (IGEC)
   Amongst other duties (see Regulatory Decree No. 15/2012 of 27 January) and within the territory of mainland Portugal, the IGEC is responsible for contributing to the quality of the education system, specifically through the following activities: 
   •    evaluation (external evaluation of schools proper, pursuant to Article 8-A of Law No. 31/2002, 20 December, as currently worded);
   •    control (verification of legal and regulatory compliance);
   •    monitoring (regular monitoring of schools’ work, through the promotion of reflection on practices).

The activities of the Evaluation programme (referred to as External Evaluation of Schools) are carried out in consecutive cycles covering all state schools and all private schools with predominantly public funding, and may also cover other private schools at their own initiative.
The assessments are carried out by assessment teams made up of two inspectors and two experts external to IGEC (teachers or researchers working in higher education institutions with whom IGEC has signed protocols), in order to diversify evaluation perspectives. In non-clustered schools with fewer than 500 students or only one level of education, the teams can be made up of two members, one inspector and one expert from outside IGEC.

The purpose of control activities is to verify that schools operate in compliance with legal and regulatory requirements; where irregularities are detected, this leads to the formulation of recommendations for the schools. Control activities follow checklists drawn up internally in accordance with the applicable standards, and have specific focuses and procedures:

• Organisation of the school year – this involves an initiative based on an analysis of the decisions and procedures governing the organisation of the school year (implementation of measures aimed at reducing the number of pupils without lessons; allocation of teaching duties and use of teaching hours; formation of classes) and relies, above all, on documentary and data analysis; the results are recorded in a summary report, which is sent to the school, listing the irregularities detected and the resulting recommendations; follow-up actions may subsequently be carried out to verify compliance with the recommendations.
• Organisation and operation of private and cooperative educational establishments – covers: operating licences; curriculum management, assessment and certification; human resources; material resources; administrative services; obligations under contracts entered into with the State; and other legal obligations, including those set out in the General Anti-Corruption Framework); is based on document analysis, meetings with management bodies, teachers and pupils, and visits to the premises; the results are recorded in a report, which may include recommendations and is returned to the school (with the right to reply) and published on the IGEC’s institutional website; follow-up visits may subsequently be carried out to verify compliance with the recommendations.
• External assessment exams – this covers exams administered by the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation, focusing on the security and confidentiality of examination papers and questions, the smooth running of the exam process, and the performance standards of those involved in the examination service; the results are recorded in a summary report listing the irregularities detected and the resulting recommendations, which is sent to the school.

The educational monitoring activity aims to promote inclusion and school success, focusing on the priority actions undertaken by each school; the inspection teams base their work on roadmaps, guidelines and information sheets, and deliver training on various areas of school operation; at the start of the activity, a monitoring plan is drawn up, and after the third stage, a summary sheet setting out the conclusions of the activity is prepared and sent to the school.

3. Control and monitoring activities do not take place at pre-defined regular intervals.

• Specialist studies (performed by, for example, EduQA, I. P., DGEEC, the National Education Council (CNE), or by higher education institutions).

Public and private vocational schools are required to develop internal criteria for evaluating the school, teachers and students; they must also implement quality assurance systems for training processes and the results achieved by their students, in line with the European Quality Assurance Reference Framework for Vocational Education and Training (EQAVET) (see Decree-Law No 92/2014, 20 June).

Education system

The National Education Council (CNE), through its permanent specialist committee for the evaluation of the education system, issues opinions, advice and recommendations (Article 12 of Law No. 31/2002, 20 December, as currently worded).
The departments of the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (MECI) shall draw up an annual report comprising a quantitative and qualitative analysis of the education system, as well as a triennial report containing an assessment of the education system and a forward-looking analysis thereof (Article 13 of the aforementioned law).

Other examples of instruments to evaluate the education system are specialist studies (performed by, for example, EduQA, I. P., DGEEC, the National Education Council (CNE), or by higher education institutions).

Within a collaborative activity with the European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education, the MECI has developed a monitoring system designed to systematically track the implementation of the Legal Framework for Inclusive Education. This system also aims to support informed decision-making and promote the continuous improvement of educational practices, strengthening equity, quality and inclusion in access to and participation in the curriculum for all pupils.

External evaluation of education and training provision for young people

Since 2009, external evaluation studies by teams of experts from higher education institutions regularly analyse the following aspects regarding vocational education and training:

• the results of vocational courses while provision expanded upper-secondary education.
• the balance and imbalances of the network of vocational courses in vocational schools and in public upper secondary education was being reformed.
• network organisation mechanisms, considering physical and material resources, pedagogical models, training and vocational guidance teams.
• the partnerships established by schools with local authorities, enterprises and other institutions.
• school provision taking into account training and work needs at local level.
• preliminary results regarding employability and further study.

EQAVET - European Quality Assurance Reference Framework for Vocational Education and Training

Established by Recommendation of the European Parliament and the Council, 18 June 2009, the European Quality Assurance Reference Framework for Vocational Education and Training (EQAVET) is designed to improve vocational education and training in Europe by providing authorities with common quality management tools, in line with national legislation and practice. 

National Model – National Qualifications Framework (QNQ) level 4

The national approach to quality assurance focusses on VET quality and improvement. The model is applicable to all Level 4 VET provision of National Qualifications Framework (Quadro Nacional de Qualificações - QNQ), regardless of their type, safeguarding future extension of implementation to different types of VET provision and providers.

Considering VET providers’ characteristics at national level, the model emphasises aspects considered key to continuous improvement of VET quality:

• the quality cycle and its phases applied to management practices: planning; implementation; review; evaluation.
• quality criteria principles, which guide management practices in each phase of the cycle:

1. strategic vision and visibility of processes and results in VET management;
2. involvement of internal and external stakeholders;
3. continuous improvement of VET using selected indicators;
4. use of the four phases of the quality cycle: planning, implementation, review, evaluation.

• The EQAVET compliance verification criteria - verification of VET providers by external experts:

1. strategic vision and visibility of processes and results in VET management;
2. involvement of internal and external stakeholders;
3. continuous improvement of VET using selected indicators;
4. use of the four stages of the quality cycle: planning, implementation, review, evaluation;
5. institutional dialogue for continuous improvement of VET provision;
6. applying the guarantee cycle and improving the quality of VET provision.

Once the above criteria have been met, according to the results of compliance verification by external experts, the Institute for Education, Quality and Evaluation (EduQA, I. P) awards the EQAVET SEAL, which certifies conformity to the EQAVET Framework.

With the awarding of the SEAL, providers continue the improvement process with reference to the EQAVET Framework. Management practices are subject to periodic monitoring and review to ensure SEAL standards and continuous quality improvement.

National context

Currently, only vocational schools are currently obliged to implement quality assurance systems in line with the EQAVET Framework (Decree-Law No 92/2014, 20 June). EduQA, I. P. is responsible for promoting, monitoring and supporting the implementation of quality assurance systems of training processes and the results achieved by students in vocational schools, certifying them as EQAVET systems.

The model represents an opportunity to establish a culture of continuous improvement that is strategic for the National Qualification System. As such, the model created  covers not only vocational schools but also VET providers implementing Level 4 provision, who can apply to this model through voluntary membership.