In this paper we discuss how teachers' knowledge and norms are influenced by management by documents.
Documents and documentation requirements have in recent decades grown and changed in the direction of control through standards and to ensure visibility of professionals working processes. Management by documents means claims for transparency of work processes and it influence the work performance. The steering alignment affects both the content of the documents and the demands for documentation. In this paper various types of action plans, drawn up to support the students' increased achievement, effectiveness and performance outcomes, provides the basis for management by documents affecting teachers´. Based on the teachers' union materials and on interviews with teachers in the Swedish compulsory school discussed how both teaching profession's collective self-image has changed and how individual teachers are influenced by and developed strategies in relation to the reforms which have led to management by document. In the collective self-image, five fields of tension identified, linked to teaching profession's knowledge base and normative systems. These are teachers as 1) generalist - specialist, dealing with 2) complex learning - measuring and assessing learning, with a fundamental focus on 3) holistic care focus - focus on results at the individual level, see themselves in the light of 4) autonomy - heteronomy and externalization, and job orientation towards 5) input - output. On an individual level, identified how the enhanced features of management by documents have impact to teachers' ability to recognition, in terms of (in) security, needs and risk. How it affects teachers' emotional involvement, in terms of (dis) comfort and passion. And evaluation of its own performance and accountability and finally the relationships, in terms of high/low trust and confidence between teachers and between teachers parents and students.