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The Swedish educational contexts were in the 1990ies characterized by extensive and rapid changes towards decentralisation and governing through goals and results. A significant feature was the introduction of instruments and techniques with a common core of “quality”. The concept “the quality idea” was used as a label for those elements that initially were imprecise and loosely put together.

The objective of this study is to describe the development of the quality idea, and to analyse this from the perspective of the state governing of the school.

A point of departure for the study is that educational forms and content are historically constituted and determined by conditions of society. Bernstein’s (1983, 2000) concepts of framing and classification and message systems, are used to capture links between societal conditions and state governing. Governing, power and legitimacy are central concepts.

The analysis of texts from the national policy level shows that in early 2000, the quality idea has become a dominant order in the system. The prevailing order can be captured by the concept Quality regime, with its rationale, technologies and instruments. The government level determines the areas and criteria for controls, while municipalities, school managers and teachers are accountable for the running and the results. The Quality Regime is a transition towards a new form of central governing, with an externalised governmental involvement as a rule-setter and monitor. Case studies at the management level in two Swedish municipalities shows that they have been compelled to assimilate the discourse of the quality regime and its applications in measurements and reporting.