The Political Legacy of School Accountability Systems

Authors

  • Sherman Dorn University of South Florida

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.v6n1.1998

Keywords:

Academic Standards, Accountability, Educational Change, Elementary Secondary Education, Outcomes of Education, Politics of Education, School Policy, Standardized Tests

Abstract

The recent battle reported from Washington about proposed national testing program does not tell the most important political story about high stakes tests. Politically popular school accountability systems in many states already revolve around statistical results of testing with high-stakes environments. The future of high stakes tests thus does not depend on what happens on Capitol Hill. Rather, the existence of tests depends largely on the political culture of published test results. Most critics of high-stakes testing do not talk about that culture, however. They typically focus on the practice legacy of testing, the ways in which testing creates perverse incentives against good teaching. More important may be the political legacy, or how testing defines legitimate discussion about school politics. The consequence of statistical accountability systems will be the narrowing of purpose for schools, impatience with reform, and the continuing erosion of political support for publicly funded schools. Dissent from the high-stakes accountability regime that has developed around standardized testing, including proposals for professionalism and performance assessment, commonly fails to consider these political legacies. Alternatives to standardized testing which do not also connect schooling with the public at large will not be politically viable.

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Author Biography

Sherman Dorn, University of South Florida

Sherman Dorn is Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychological and Social Foundations at the University of South Florida. He received his Ph.D. in history at the University of Pennsylvania in 1992 based on his work on the history of dropout policies. He is currently looking at the history of special education in Nashville, Tennessee, from 1940 to 1990.

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Published

1998-01-02

How to Cite

Dorn, S. (1998). The Political Legacy of School Accountability Systems. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 6, 1. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.v6n1.1998

Issue

Section

Articles