This brief is part of a four-part series examining the past, present, and future of modern school accountability systems. With the dual forces of the COVID-19 pandemic and the national call to action on racial inequity, the question of how we should measure and hold schools accountable for the impact they have on students is more urgent than ever.…

Key legislative objectives for the US Federal educational policy over the past several decades relied heavily on quasi-market strategies (such as school rating, school closure, the contracting out of schools) as central levers in "reforming" public schools. Using financial data on 11 national for-profit firms contracting with schools and…

School leaders are increasingly coming under the gun of accountability, and this monograph is designed to help leaders think about, understand, and respond thoughtfully and effectively to the increasing demands for accountability in education. It provides a comprehensive and rather sophisticated set of concepts and insights into accountability…

Speculates about how opportunity-to-learn (OTL) standards might be defined and used at federal and state levels and, in the process, to better understand why OTL standards have become so controversial. The author discusses OTL within the context of The Goals 2000: Educate America Act and how the standards might be used and what they should…

Summarizes the major provisions of the Improving America's Education Act (IASA): (1) higher standards for all children; (2) a focus on teaching and learning; (3) flexibility to stimulate local school-based and district initiatives, coupled with the responsibility for student performance; (4) links among schools, parents, and communities; and (5)…