Special Topic Area:
Accountability for Students with Disabilities

Introduction

The term "accountability" is central to efforts in standards-based reform. Accountability has been defined in various ways, but typically refers to an individual or group of individuals taking responsibility for the performance of students on achievement measures or other types of educational outcomes (e.g., dropout rates). States and districts have been working to develop reliable and valid indicators for accountability, including indicators of how schools are doing in helping all students achieve high standards. These indicators make up the state and district accountability system, and are generally used to report progress to the public and to build school improvement plans. The extent to which students with disabilities are included in these indicators is a topic requiring attention.

Within state or district systems, there may be two kinds of accountability. One kind assigns responsibility to the student (student accountability) and the other assigns responsibility to the educational system or individuals within that system (system accountability). All states have some type of system accountability, but not all states have student accountability.

Today the consequences of accountability systems are becoming more significant, often referred to as "high stakes." States are more often relying on evidence from state and district assessments to determine high stakes. The most common use of assessment evidence for student stakes is to determine whether a student receives a standard high school diploma, or some other type of document. Another type of student accountability, appearing with increasing frequency, determines whether a student will move from one grade to another. This latter type has emerged under the banner of "no social promotion."

Accountability provisions in the Federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), reauthorized in 2001 as No Child Left Behind (NCLB), calls for system accountability to hold schools and districts responsible for the performance of students. These scores must be reported by subgroup, including students with disabilities, to ensure that all students meet the performance criteria determined by the state to be proficient. If any subgroup in a school does not make "adequate yearly progress" (AYP) toward "proficiency", the school is labeled as "in need of improvement." Consequences are applied after a second year of failure to meet AYP. Full details of the provisions of NCLB can be found on the Web site: http://www.ed.gov/index.jhtml.

System accountability is designed to improve educational programs, whereas student accountability is designed to motivate students to do their best. Both types of accountability can have unintended negative consequences as well as the intended positive consequences. A common theme in the academic literature is that high stakes for students should not be imposed until the system has been held accountable for providing adequate programs to all students. This is not what is occurring in the United States today. In part because of this, the participation of students with disabilities in these systems creates unique challenges.

Clearly, there is much controversy and confusion surrounding accountability issues, especially when it comes to including students with disabilities and other students with special needs. There is significant need for dialogue and further consideration of issues.

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This page was last updated on July 15, 2008