What Is Accountability and Why Does It Matter?

The American K-12 education system is stuck — and it’s failing young people. National Assessment of Educational Progress scores over the past decade are stagnant. Public school spending is up, but enrollment is falling. Artificial intelligence is quickly changing what students need to be prepared for a world and workforce that’s hard to predict. Meanwhile, confidence in public education is at an all-time low, and families have more options than ever outside the traditional public school system.

All of these dynamics raise questions that the education sector needs to answer: 

• How are we defining and measuring students’ educational success? 
• How are we connecting resources to instructional needs? 
• How are we measuring and assessing the success of schools in meeting every student’s educational needs?
• How are we supporting school improvement when results fail to meet expectations? 

State accountability systems are supposed to answer these questions by setting clear goals, measuring progress toward those goals for all students, and driving improvement when schools fail to support that progress. But in many states, these systems don’t fulfill that vision. To meet the moment, we need to get clear on why state accountability still matters and how it needs to change.

Bellwether Experts Weigh In

This series focuses on the role of accountability systems built to meet federal and state requirements to ensure that schools and districts are meeting their obligation to graduate all students ready for college and career. In it, Bellwether experts unpack the important role of accountability through these lenses:

1. Regional examples of accountability done well in “Southern Surge” states
2. The connection between funding and accountability
3. The role of state accountability in classroom practice
4. Accountability as a design and support challenge, not just a measurement challenge
5. How accountability shapes career-connected learning indicators
6. Accountability models for alternative schools that reflect the work they do

What Are the “Southern Surge” States Doing Right?

Mark Baxter and Jennifer O’Neal Schiess highlight regional examples of accountability done well and what other states can learn.

Is It a Funding Problem or an Accountability Problem? Trick Question.

Bonnie O’Keefe explores how K-12 funding systems and accountability systems should work together.

What Does Accountability Look Like in the Classroom?

Emily Shisler shares her own experience with how accountability shapes conversations in schools and, ultimately, classroom instruction.

Stop Perfecting the Rating. Start Building the Support.

Carrie Hahnel and Michelle Croft break down why accountability is fundamentally a design and support challenge, not just a measurement challenge.

In Career-Connected Learning, We’re Not Measuring “Readiness”

Kelly Robson Foster examines why career-connected learning indicators don’t measure whether students are prepared for college and career beyond K-12 and outlines policy solutions.

Rethinking Accountability Measures for Alternative Schools

Hailly Korman explains why accountability models for alternative schools are rarely built to reflect the work those schools do and the students they serve.

Learn more about Bellwether’s state and federal systems expertise or contact Mark Baxter at mark.baxter@bellwether.org.