An Accountability Review

1. Accountability: Where Do Teachers Fit?

In this article, Lorna M. Earl Ph.D. examines teacher accountability from the perspective of the classroom rather than large-scale initiatives. Imagine that, looking at the roles and responsibilities of teachers from the place where they perform. What a reasonable, sensible and yet somehow innovative thing to do in the name of accountability.

Accountability: Where Do Teachers Fit is a fairly comprehensible and engaging read. For the most part, it is easy to make connections from Earl’s points to my own experiences. For example, she explains how accountability has resulted in, “professional morale” being at “an all time low and it is hard to rally energy to do the job.” As disheartening as this statement may be, it is very true. Teachers in my school feel that there is more pressure to have a high percentage of students pass than to actually learn.

Earl explains how most teachers entered the profession with a single goal in mind: “To enrich the lives of their students.” However, the impact of accountability has placed far too much emphasis on things such standardized testing that less time is spent in the classroom where, “The impact of teachers on a daily basis is profound and lasting, with the ultimate quality of education always hinging on effective teaching and learning.” Moreover, Earl addresses the inherent responsibility teachers have in developing solid relationships with students and parents. She argues that, “Parents send their most precious possessions to the schools to enhance their learning and their chances in life.” Well, how wonderful would it be if all parents really felt that way? If each student came from a home environment where the parents’ goal was that of the teacher’s developing those relationships would be simple. Unfortunately, not all parents value education and so “having a very direct responsibility to the students in [our] charge and to the parents of those students” is not always easy or even sought after by parents. In fact, I have encountered parents who obstruct relationships between students and teachers, promoting the idea that teachers and the education system are enemies. Regardless, I agree with Earl and believe these relationships are pertinent to student success and teacher accountability. I make an effort to communicate with the parents of my students at the onset of each semester by newsletter, telephone and recently through the internet; as I feel and have seen that these relationships or at least this communication enhances student achievement.

Earl also effectively outlines what teachers should be accountable for as professionals. She advocates that “individuals can only be held responsible for things which they have some control.” Thus she states that it is in my or any other teachers control to, “always be learning, growing and changing [our] conceptions of the world around [us], the role and nature of education, the material [we] teach and the implications for [our] daily activities.” Again, this sounds quite reasonable; I believe I should be held accountable for this. Accordingly, Earl explains that teachers should be responsible for ensuring that our knowledge is “current, accurate and comprehensive” in order to expend quality education. Moreover, she maintains that the learning teachers need to be accountable for includes:

• Understanding Learning
• Content Knowledge
• Pedagogical Understanding
• Emotional Understanding
• Fundamentals of Change
• Meta-Learning

Next, Earl explains how the goals of education have changed to “produce high levels of success for all of the diverse learners in schools.” In other words, that there is now a focus on equity. Initially, Earl attempts to disprove the North American belief that “inequality in education is largely a function of students’ innate abilities rather than the quality of schools and teachers.” She suggests that, “more affluent and privileged children get access to more skilled teachers, more challenging curriculum and have more opportunities to think or write.” However, I disagree with Earl on this point. I know many teachers who have taught in private schools which do in fact have more resources but do not necessarily have better teachers or more time for students to think and write. Moreover, the teachers I know who have had experience teaching in affluent schools were not teaching in their subject areas and commented on how students were less interested in learning and more interested in receiving high marks. As a result, the teachers were not happy in these schools and opted to teach in the public boards where they sought relief in equity.

Following this, Earl further examines the need for continuous communication between teachers, students and parents. She highlights the benefits of having respectful and open relationships where decisions can be made about future learning. Additionally, she discusses how “time in schools is well used when students are engaged with their learning, using their knowledge and interests and actively thinking about the issues at hand.” Therefore, costly devices which are often thought to enhance student learning are not always necessary if teachers are creating an effective learning environment. Again, this is something I strongly agree with. I have found that many departments fight for more money to have multiple projectors and SMART Boards, only to be used as glorified overheads. In other words, is it really necessary to put simple words that could be written on the chalkboard into a Power Point Presentation? Technologies like these are often overused and can be disengaging to students. Of course, I use these technologies, but I don’t find it necessary to use it every day. In fact, I find that students love to write on the chalkboard and they also love to use chart paper. I find that in a world where students utilize electronic devices daily, they find it exciting to be given something tangible and lucky for us teachers, cost-effective!

Finally, Earl concludes that “professional accountability is characterized by ongoing conversations” not limited to parent teacher interviews and report cards. She offers guidelines for helping teachers attend to their professional accountability and closes by saying, “Teachers can accomplish a great deal . . . To students and parents; for quality, equity, openness and efficiency in learning; through sustained and important conversations about students, about teaching and about learning.” Overall, I think she has done a great job bringing accountability back into the classroom and highlighting on the true aspects of our jobs which we should be accountable for.

Full Text Available Here

2. Accountability in Education

This paper was not as effortless to read as the previous article. However, Accountability in Education does do an excellent job of clearly defining what is meant by the term ‘accountability.’ The article states that “accountability is synonymous with responsible and is defined as “required to account for one’s conduct.” Additionally, a second definition is offered claiming that accountability is “an obligation to answer for how one’s assigned responsibilities have been carried out.” The first definition is one I would say best describes how I feel I should be accountable as a teacher. I believe my conduct in the classroom should be of a specific caliber. However, the latter definition suggests that I would be accountable for carrying out responsibilities that could possibly go beyond the teaching realm. Additionally, the second definition espouses a negative connotation. Nevertheless the accountability has been elucidated.

Accountability in Education offers suggestions for improving the accountability system as well as highlights some of the current flaws. The article addresses the fact that provincial assessments are designed mostly for students with academic aptitude. This is problematic as it “represents a very narrow span of children’s gifts, talents and potential” where “society is more dependant than ever on citizenry with a wide array of skills, knowledge and attitudes.” It is explained that “many believe that every student is unique and has preferred styles of learning that may not match the approaches used on standardized tests.” Moreover, the article continues to expound upon the fact that:

Standardized testing is designed to ignore or override external factors affecting individuals, such as poverty; parents’ educational level, mental, physical and emotional health; the effects of racial and other forms of discrimination; and language of origin during measurement.

However, the High School Diploma in itself is standardized. I believe that when a student receives their Diploma that it is assumed that student is both literate and numerate. In other words, you can’t earn something that is a standard without having met the standards. Furthermore, I believe that employers assume this ideology. When and where could a student get a job and not be expected to perform due to a factor such as emotional health? Of course, there are scenarios whereby employees are forgiven for such circumstances. However, where do we draw the line in regards to student accountability and “milking the system” so to speak?

Interestingly, this article also addresses the downfall of student focus on achieving high test scores. The example states:

When students focus on achieving high test scores, they are less likely to learn to their capacity, love learning and value creative thinking, accept mistakes as a normal part of learning and develop their unique learning styles.

Unfortunately, I’ve seen this first hand many times. Students have expressed concern for their learning and wish to improve their grades. Consequently, I take great care in writing in-depth comments on their work, provide examples and explain to them how they can improve their skills in order to improve their grades. Yet, surprisingly this is not what the students seem to want. It seems they want to express and interest in their concern for learning, but really, they just want high marks. As a result, they take little interest in the assessment and feedback of their work and repeat the same errors again and again. In fact, I am often insulted when I spend the time to write in-depth comments only to see them thrown in the trash once the overall percentage has been read. Perhaps a future plan of mine could be to hand back assignments without the rubric and mark until after students have re-examined their tasks. Nevertheless, to get back on track, I can see how see how the focus can be deterred from learning. Yet, it is known to students that the mark they receive on the OSSLT does not go on their record and it seems that academic students pay very little attention to this test. However, the teacher concern of time spent focusing on the topics for standardized tests are also addressed in this paper. It is stated that, “Time pressures contribute to a narrowing of the curriculum, as available time is focused on the topics that will be on the provincial test or examination.” However, I’ve taught many sections of Grade 10 English and have not found covering certain expectations of the OSSLT invasive of the curriculum. In fact, I use some of the OSSLT activities to help meet specific expectations and incorporate them into evaluations.

Next, this article presents an extensive context for an effective accountability system. The system includes four perspectives on accountability in education based on System Coherence and Program Integrity, it offers:

• Focus on highly standardized, selected learnings in core subjects
• Focus on broad goals of education
• Culture of Compliance: Contracts, regulations, controlling to ensure consistency
• Culture of Ingenuity: Shared values and goals, encouraging flexibility, building capacity

Overall, I find the idea behind this theory rather effective, yet the approach seems too scientific, less personal and very hard to apply to my own teaching.

Finally, Accountability in Education articulates 7 “Key Principals” of an effective accountability system. Those principals are:

1. Education partners have a shared understanding of and commitment to fairness, openness, respect for diversity and stewardship, key values underlying accountability in education.
2. The primary purpose of accountability in education is to support the broad goals of education and the diverse learning needs of children and youth.
3. Information for accountability purposes is gathered in a variety of ways from all relevant sources, and reported and used in ways that respect the limitations of the data.
4. Sound educational research and practice guide the design and implementation of an accountability system in education.
5. Accountability in education enhances the capacity of education partners to fulfill their respective roles and responsibilities and leads to sustained improvement of the system.
6. Each education partner is accountable for those areas of the system within its authority and expertise.
7. The system of accountability in education is evaluated on an ongoing basis.
   

Cumulatively, I feel that the principals outlined above are in fact, key in formulating effective accountability in education. Furthermore, this section of the article was much more reader-friendly and identifiable to current education practices; particularly, the outlining of responsibilities for all partners of education in Principle 6. Consequently, I would suggest that all personnel involved in education should read what their role entails according to Accountability in Education and see if they feel they’re fulfilling their duties.

Full Text Available Here

3. Hyde’s Key Issues:

Classroom Accountability

Placing emphasis on positive relationships between teachers and students; engaging individuals and encouraging personal growth and learning, not numeric success

Valuing the High School Diploma

Discouraging the “passing” of students who fail to meet expectations. Ensure that there is a standard expectation that students who possess a High School Diploma are literate, numerate and competent to work independently

Communication

Should be continuous and ongoing between students, teachers, parents and other educators such as guidance counselors and resource teachers

Pennywise

Spend money wisely. Do not make frivolous purchases on technologies that are no more effective than what is already in our possession

Collaboration

Bridging the gap between teachers and policy makers