The Accountability Illusion

February 19, 2009
This study examines the No Child Left Behind Act system and Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) rules for 28 states. We selected 36 real schools (half elementary, half middle) that vary by size, achievement, diversity, etc. and determined which of them would or would not make AYP when evaluated under each state's accountability rules. If a school that made AYP in Washington were relocated to Wisconsin or Ohio, would that same school make AYP there? Based on this analysis, we can see how AYP varies across the country and evaluate the effectiveness of NCLB.

National report:
Executive Summary | Foreword | Preface | Introduction & Methodology | Findings & Limitations | Discussion | Appendices | References

http://edexcellence.net/accountability_illusion/Nutshell_AccountabilityIllusion.pdf

Press Release

http://www.edexcellence.net/flypaper/index.php/2009/02/the-accountability-illusion-an-interview-with-checker/