Rethinking the Way We Hold Schools Accountable

By Helen F. Ladd

Test-based accountability for schools has been a centerpiece of state-level education policy for more than a decade, and of national policy in the form of the No Child Left Behind Act since 2002.

This approach uses measures of outcomes—primarily student achievement as determined by test scores—to hold schools accountable for student performance. It differs from political accountability directed toward public officials and from market-based accountability in which schools answer directly to parents.

An important virtue of test-based accountability is that it appeals to three quite different views of what is wrong with American schools. Proponents of standards-based reform hail it as one component of a broader strategy to overcome the fragmented and incoherent nature of the K-12 education system. Others see it as a way to pressure inefficient teachers and school administrators into becoming more productive. Still others embrace it as a tool to address the huge disparities in educational outcomes across groups defined by...