Most states have developed or revised school accountability systems in response to the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). While these systems include multiple indicators, to many stakeholders the outcome of central interest is the overall rating or classification produced for each school. These ratings are often used to identify schools that merit…

When students labeled English Learners (ELs) are reclassified as Fluent English Proficient, changes often occur in services and settings (e.g., changes in teachers, peers, and ancillary services). Policymakers play an important role in the reclassification process because they establish test-based criteria that an EL must attain in order to become…

This brief (1) defines indicators, (2) places the concept into the context of the various ways indicators can be used in education, (3) explores some specific considerations and concerns that arise in evaluating results, (4) offers a categorization and examples of short-term outcome indicators for school use, and (5) stresses the need for policy…

Authorizers are as varied as the schools they oversee. Some are responsible for just one charter, while others monitor hundreds of charters serving tens of thousands of students. Some are school districts, while others are independent statewide boards, universities, not-for-profits, or state education agencies. Regardless of their size and type,…

This "Practitioner's Guide to Growth Models," commissioned by the Technical Issues in Large-Scale Assessment (TILSA) and Accountability Systems & Reporting (ASR), collaboratives of the "Council of Chief State School Officers," describes different ways to calculate student academic growth and to make judgments about the…

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 provides guidelines that all public schools in the United States must follow. Provisions of this law require that specific assessments be given to all students in schools across the United States and that individual states establish one system of accountability for all schools. Although much is being done,…

The Wisconsin State Employment Security Division has an employment counselor classification scheme which responds to the cry for accountability. This article discusses five basic requirements in the classification system, as well as the overall value of the system. (Author/PC)

The Center for Research on Educational Accountability and Teacher Evaluation (CREATE) completed a meta-evaluation of school evaluation models in 1992. The procedures, categories, standards, and criteria of this study, which reviewed 51 models, are described. The results of the study, which reflect broadened dimensions of school evaluation, are…

The National Postsecondary Education Cooperative (NPEC), with the support of the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics, was formed to develop ways to improve the utility of information for policy making at all levels and in all sectors of the postsecondary education enterprise. This report provides a model for…

Presents criteria for evaluating and comparing Web search tools designed for children. Highlights include database size; accountability; categorization; search access methods; help files; spell check; URL searching; links to alternative search services; advertising; privacy policy; and layout and design. (LRW)

This report discusses the nature of performance objectives and how they may be classified. Ways in which performance objectives may be used in improving instruction are elaborated on in sections on: (1) stating subject-matter and higher goals as performance objectives, (2) taxonomic classification of performance objectives, and (3) limitations and…