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.…

Race to the Top is the latest in a line of federal programs reshaping K-12 education. This article traces the history and goals of Race to the Top, with particular attention paid to the means by which practicing classroom teachers are evaluated and held accountable for student learning as measured by standardized tests. Implications for music…

In the United States, as public demands for quality teachers have escalated, there has been a corresponding increase in national policy efforts to tie the standards of student success to teacher preparation, licensing, and evaluation. This conceptual paper examines how national authorities used specific policy tools to usurp the state's…

The purpose of this study was to examine all states' participation guidelines for alternate assessments based on alternate achievement standards (AA-AAS) and to analyze these guidelines for common and contrasting themes. State alternate assessment participation guidelines were found for all 50 states. Participation guidelines were coded, and 12…

This report on state and district educational assessment programs suggests that, rather than being a threat, these assessments can be an important avenue to equity and excellence for English language learners with disabilities. It begins by examining some of the original ideas behind standards-based education, such as how current federal…

This document discusses educational reform and the implications of educational standards on students with disabilities. Topics addressed include: (1) common educational reforms; (2) new laws promoting education reform; (3) how today's reforms fit with special education; (4) the different types of standards, including content standards and…

The "State ESEA ["Elementary and Secondary Education Act"] Title I Participation Summary Report for 2002-03" summarizes the participation data for the Title I, Part A, Grants to Local Education Agencies (LEAs) program. This program financially assists eligible school districts and schools in providing opportunities for at-risk…

This policy paper, by a former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education for Policy and Planning, argues that President Clinton and the previous "education Congress" designed a top-down strategy reminiscent of the Great Society programs in the 1960s to reform America's school systems. The resultant educational legislation has occurred at a…

This paper describes the processes that one school district, the Visalia Unified School District (California), went through in establishing a standards-based assessment and accountability system using multiple methods. First the district's standards-based assessment and accountability system and the methods used to establish it are described, and…

This report addresses issues concerned with reporting educational results for students with disabilities, identifies principles to guide reporting practices, and offers recommendations. The report notes that there are many purposes for reporting and that reporting information on students with disabilities is important because it ensures that they…

Federal legislation to improve education passed in 1994 is reviewed and two major bills are discussed in greater detail. Emphasis is on the legislation's provisions for improvement of educational standards and access to improved education for all students, especially the disadvantaged. An introductory section highlights the provisions of three…