Giving Compass' Take:

· Anne Wicks and William McKenzie talk with Steve Canavero, Nevada’s superintendent of public instruction, about the need for accountability in education and why that starts with ensuring equal access to resources. 

· What does accountability mean in education? How can it be introduced? 

· Learn more about the call for accountability in education reform.

How do you define accountability? And how has that definition changed for you over time?

I don’t see accountability as a single thing, but it is grounded in clear outcomes and expectations. They are the cornerstones of accountability. And accountability includes conversations about progress towards those clear expectations in a formative and summative way.

Over time, my view has changed. The big idea of being accountable for changing the lives and learning conditions for kids hasn’t changed, but I have recognized a more nuanced approach to accountability.

I’d simplify it by describing accountability as “Big A” and “Little A.” Big A is what we tend to believe in the education space. Big A involves summative consequences and judgments and Little A is sometimes called performance management. Little A involves adults being accountable for improving conditions for kids and working collectively to be accountable for that outcome.

Read the full article about accountability in education by Anne Wicks and William McKenzie at The 74.