Abstract
Major reforms in assessment policy in Queensland secondary schools have occurred during the past 30 years. In each case, the reforms resulted from the adoption of recommendations, produced by a panel of experts, which constituted the design for a new system. Two features of the designs—their underlying philosophy and the status and technical adequacy of the recommendations—affected their prospects of success. Other influences were the experiences of teachers and public opinion as expressed and shaped through the media. Although substantial procedural changes were made to each assessment system during its operating life, these adjustments seemed incapable of warding off a crisis of professional and public confidence. In this article, crises in the reform cycles are analysed and interpreted in terms of legitimation theory.