McREL study finds public beliefs about accountability not aligned with federal and local policies
October 17, 2005
Aurora,
Colo.—A
new issues brief released today from Mid-continent Research for Education
and Learning (McREL) suggests that parents appear to have different
expectations than lawmakers for what it means to hold schools accountable
for student success.
The brief, titled Examining the meaning of accountability: Reframing the construct, reports on the results of an ongoing research project McREL, a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization based in Aurora, Colo., conducted to uncover what parents and other community members, particularly those in underrepresented populations, think "education accountability" means - that is, to whom and for what do they believe educators should be held "accountable."
To conduct this research, McREL examined existing research and conducted focus groups, follow-up interviews, and surveys of parents and community members. The study was supported, in part, by the Kettering Foundation, a Dayton, Ohio-based nonprofit foundation focused on studying and improving democracy.
Some key findings reported in the brief are as follows:
Respondents generally believed that in addition to schools, parents, community members, and students should also be held accountable for student success.
Respondents accept standardized tests as a means of measuring student progress, but believe that other means should be included.
Community members in rural areas demonstrated resistance to imposed standards and lack of faith in the quality of statewide assessments.
Spanish-speaking community members voiced concern that despite the rhetorical focus on ensuring the success of all students, teachers do not consider themselves "equally accountable" for the education of all children.
McREL researchers concluded that parents and the community, particularly in underrepresented populations, do not always understand the nature of standards, accountability or testing in the same way that policymakers do. One reason for this misunderstanding may be inadequate communication among parents, community members, schools, and policymakers. Researchers suggest one way to involve parents is in the interpretation of student data, but these data need to be relative to the needs of the community, and the rationale behind the data and the conclusions reached must be transparent.
"With our nation's focus on accountability, to whom and for what education is accountable has become increasingly important to schools and communities," said Tim Waters, president and chief executive officer of McREL. "McREL and the Kettering Foundation thought that, for accountability policies to succeed at all levels, it was imperative to find out not only whether the public supports accountability, but how they define school accountability."
"We believe that improving parent and community involvement is not only possible but necessary to make accountability meaningful to those involved and affected. Searching for ways to engage parents and community members in clear and coherent conversations about accountability is an important first step," said Waters.
###
McREL is a nationally recognized, private, nonprofit organization
located in Aurora, Colo., dedicated to improving education for all
students through applied research, product development and service.
Its staff of highly respected educators and researchers focuses
on providing educators and policymakers with the highest quality,
field-tested, research-based products and services available in
PreK–16 education.
