The 'A' Word

Accountability. On its surface, the word simply means a willingness to accept responsibility for one’s actions. Accountability applied to schools, however, has become so twisted and polarizing that it is now the equivalent of a dirty word. To mention it is to risk being met with stern, disapproving looks and accusations of being anti-teacher and a corporate raider looking to profit off the backs of kids. What? How did we get here?

As with all polarizing issues, the truth is much more nuanced and requires us to look beyond the sound bites. The “A” Word seeks to do that through conversations with recognized education leaders.

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The 'A' Word

Education news and commentary, delivered right to your inbox.

Education Accountability: 5 State Leaders on Why It Matters for the Students They Serve — The ‘A’ Word

Steve Canavero: There’s an Aspect of Accountability Missing at the District Level — The ‘A’ Word

Pedro Rivera: When Not Used the Right Way, Accountability Is Just Medicine That Is Masking the Root of the Problem — The ‘A’ Word

Bill Haslam: Obama and Bush Both Took ‘Huge Steps’ of Political Courage on Educational Accountability, and Paid Huge Dividends — The ‘A’ Word

John White: ‘Exaggerated Accountability Response in Combination With Exaggerated Chaos Will Produce Distrust’ — The ‘A’ Word

Jamie Woodson: Education Success Isn’t the Responsibility of Any One Sector. We Are All Accountable — The ‘A’ Word

The ‘A’ Word: Tom Boasberg — ‘Accountability Is Not About Punishment’

The ‘A’ Word: Holly Kuzmich — ‘Many of the Challenges Still in Place Can’t Be Tackled Via Policy Change’

The ‘A’ Word: Diane Tavenner — ‘What I Really Want to Know Are Yes-or-No Answers to 3 Things’

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The ‘A’ Word: Daniel King — ‘Everything’s at Stake If We Don’t Improve Social Mobility’

The ‘A’ Word: Wicks & McKenzie — The 4 Things That Accountability Should Do Well

The ‘A’ Word: Dustin Marshall — ‘It’s Shocking, Appalling, That There Are Arguments Made in Education That Data Is Bad’

The ‘A’ Word: Gerard Robinson — ‘We Have Got to Get Rid of the Term “Accountability.” It’s Simply Too Toxic.’

The ‘A’ Word: Kevin Huffman — ‘Parents Don’t Dislike Testing as Much as People Think They Do. They Hate Test Prep’

The ‘A’ Word: Felicia Cumings Smith — ‘You Have to Lean Into the Messiness and Have Honest Conversations’

The ‘A’ Word: Hanna Skandera — ‘I Am Not Anti-Union Until They Don’t Put Kids First’

The ‘A’ Word: John King — ‘In Too Many Places, Underperformance Is Not Only Tolerated, but Assumed’

The ‘A’ Word: John King — Why Equity Matters So Much to Me

The ‘A’ Word: Accountability — The Dirty Word of Today’s Education Reform

The ‘A’ Word: Lizzette Reynolds — ‘Accountability Shouldn’t Be Considered a Way of Limiting a Child’s Progress’

The ‘A’ Word: Margaret Spellings — ‘You Can’t Solve a Problem That You Don’t Diagnose Correctly, Fairly, Accurately, and Comparably’

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