SOME SIMILARITIES AND SINGULARITIES OF EUROPEAN EDUCATION INSPECTORATES FROM THEIR BIRTH TO THE PRESENT DAY

Abstract

The professionalization and secularization of education inspectorates in Europe developed in a staggered manner, beginning in the Netherlands and France at the beginning of the nineteenth century and consolidating in practically all European countries over the last two centuries. During these 225 years of history of education inspectorates, the purposes of the inspection, the responsibilities of the inspectors and the ways of organizing their tasks present similarities and variations depending on the different historical moments, as well as the characteristics of the countries, or even regions, where education inspectorates exist. The aim of this article is, firstly, to make a brief overview of the education inspectorates of a variety of European countries, providing some relevant data on the changes that have determined the purpose of school inspection from its beginnings to the present day and, secondly, to detail and reflect on the variety of professionals who carry out inspections in educational establishments and the tasks they carry out in the different countries of the European continent.