‘Growth Models’ Gaining in Accountability Debate

As the U.S. Department of Education opens the alternative measuring stick to all states, some educators call for the models to take center stage under a renewed No Child Left Behind Act.

In the debate over the future of the No Child Left Behind Act, policymakers, educators, and researchers seem to agree on one thing: The federal law’s accountability system should be rewritten so it rewards or sanctions schools on the basis of students’ academic growth.

Congress, they say, should scrap the current model, which judges schools on the number of their students who are deemed proficient. That method, its critics say, overlooks schools whose students are showing growth toward proficiency, and sometimes fails to single out high-achieving schools in which a significant proportion of students aren’t making progress.

The U.S. Department of Education recently reaffirmed the Bush administration’s commitment to so-called growth models. Earlier this month, the department announced it would approve all states’ growth models that meet its criteria for participating in...