When accountability systems fail Texas Public Accountability Consortium works to create next-gen assessment and accountability By Dacia Rivers
Texans are known for their colorful idioms. Evocative and to-the-point, many Texas turns of phrase are applicable in countless situations. One of the most famous of these is “all hat and no cattle,” as in “Boy, that A-F accountability system is all hat and no cattle.” Or how about: “If you don’t like the weather, give it a minute.” In Texas public schools, the weather is due for a mighty big change, especially when the climate you’re talking about is the one surrounding public school accountability.And it’s been a long time coming. In 2006, after decades in which the Texas public education system had grown increasingly reliant on punitive, compliance-focused accountability centered around a single, standardized test, 35 public school superintendents began working together with TASA to build a new vision for Texas’ public schools.Twelve years later, the visioning document they created is the driving force behind TASA’s transformation initiative, a large part of which focuses on a change away from a focus on standardized testing to multiple measures of assessment and a more comprehensive community-based type of school accountability. Although the state’s public school accountability system has only grown more punitive with the 2015 adoption of A-F ratings, which will brand schools and districts with letter grades based largely on the results of a single standardized test, there continues to be pushback from those who know a more comprehensive, less “one-size-fits-all” type of system is the better solution. They are the driving force behind the Texas Public Accountability Consortium (TPAC), a group of 51 school districts working together to come up with a new, well-rounded and inclusive way of assessing schools based on the needs of Texas’ many diverse communities that will be more accurate and instructive than the current system.
The failure of A-F accountability TPAC was formed in 2017, after John Tanner, founder of Test Sense, wrote a series of articles on accountability for TASA as a response to the unpopular A-F accountability system. The articles grew into a conversation, which led to the creation of a consortium of 44 school districts looking to change the way Texas school districts measure success.
Many school leaders across Texas agree with this thinking. In 2017, 566 Texas school boards passed resolutions opposing the A-F rating method, pointing out that besides being culturally biased, similar rating systems have not fared well in other states and give districts limited feedback on what they’re supposed to do to improve.
“There are no A-F success stories,” says Eric Simpson,TASA’s director of learning and leadership services. “The foundation these accountability systems are built upon is seriously flawed.”
Five years before that, 881 school boards adopted a resolution that noted the state’s over-reliance on standardized, highstakes testing and called on the Texas Legislature to reexamine the public school accountability system to develop a system that relies on multiple assessments and more accurately reflects what students know, appreciate, and can do.
Simpson says that Texas’ A-F system was introduced to give power to privatization, and it is harmful since it relies in large part on data from a standardized test that is being misused. “The STAAR was never designed to predict college readiness, and it was never designed to measure growth,” Simpson says, “but those are two things that it’s being forced to do within our current state accountability system.” 16
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Those who lead Texas public schools are saying that public school accountability — and the way students are assessed — must change.To bring about this change,TPAC has partnered with multiple groups, including the University of Pittsburgh’s Institute for Learning, Envision Education, NWEA, the Great Schools Partnership and the Research Triangle Institute.
Not your state’s accountability system Since House Bill 22 was passed by the Texas Legislature during the 2017 regular session,TEA has also been in the process of creating an optional local accountability plan through a pilot program. However, this effort is not part of or related to TPAC, which is working toward influencing a much bigger change. For starters, the TEA’s local accountability option is still testbased. It also still uses the A-F rating system. “I think it’s a step in the right direction, but it’s disingenuous to say it’s local accountability; there’s nothing communitybased about it,” Simpson says. “TPAC is focused on creating something really different.The TEA plan is more of the same, while we’re trying to really reshape the system.” While TEA was beginning its pilot program,TPAC members spent 2017 putting together a manual that defines the components of a healthy community-based accountability system. They had some models from which to draw inspiration, as a number of TPAC districts, including Amarillo, Clear Creek, College Station, Huntsville, Northwest and Sunnyvale ISDs, already have such systems in place. (Learn more about them at https://goo.gl/Xs2WXP.)
A community’s needs A community-based accountability system (CBAS) allows a district to set goals for itself based on local needs and expectations. Districts that have developed a CBAS have first gathered information on what their local communities value, then moved forward from there to see what metrics should be used to assess whether or not their schools are achieving success as defined by their communities. Using a CBAS involves working with local business leaders, colleges, elected officials and community leaders to determine where growth is needed.This method of local accountability allows educators to serve as direct assessors, measuring each student’s levels of achievement in a more complete and holistic way. Community-based accountability isn’t meant to be an option for districts that wish to escape from standardized testing. It’s a model that incorporates many different measures of student success and weighs them, rather than relying largely on the results of one test that can make or break a school district.
“We think it’s actually a greater accountability for a district to make its own system,” Simpson says.“Our teachers understand a lot more about student achievement and where their students are than the current state accountability system gives them credit for.” TPAC’s manual outlines seven pillars for a successful CBAS as a starting point for districts looking to create their own: student learning and progress; student readiness; engaged, well-rounded students; community engagement and partnerships; professional learning/quality staff; fiscal and operational systems; and safety and well-being. With this list as a guide, districts can determine where they need growth and adjust their assessment methods accordingly. “Our long-term goal is to create an alternative that can replace the state system for districts that choose to commit to a greater accountability,” Simpson says. “A lot of districts might choose to stay involved in a standardized test-based accountability system, if that works for them, but we want to give a richer option.”
Testing grounds Now in their second year of work,TPAC has added 19 new districts. Its members are devoting 2018 to creating tools and acquiring resources and expertise to determine what’s needed to create and implement a CBAS in their schools. Michael Kalnbach, principal of Glenn Middle School in San Angelo ISD and a TPAC member, has already begun incorporating CBAS aspects at his school. He feels it’s a giant leap in the right direction. “Community-based accountability from the campus level perspective looks at the whole child, and measures so many other things besides just what they do on one test on one day,” Kalnbach says.“Even if we’re going to test a certain skill, performance assessment within a CBAS will look at them over the whole course of the year, over the whole course of their career, which will allow students to see their value through other ways of performing.” While each district in TPAC is looking independently into what new types of assessments might look like, the group meets regularly to collaborate and share ideas and success stories. Simpson points out that these new assessments may or may not include some form of testing, but the overall community-based accountability systems will incorporate
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“My hypothesis is that we’re going to get better results from these kids’ learning because they’ll have to apply their knowledge instead of just bubbling in a multiple-choice answer,” Satterwhite says. “I’m hoping that by using project-based assessment, we’re going to be fostering the things we want to see in our graduates as opposed to producing efficient test-takers.”
A brighter future Everyone involved in TPAC is excited about the work they’re doing and hopeful for a future that includes more locally created accountability methods in Texas schools. After 34 years of seeing it done the same old way,Test Sense’s John Tanner says he is hopeful that the folks in charge will be on board with incorporating CBAS on a statewide level. His talks with policy makers have made him realize that they’re interested in a new accountability method — they just need help determining what a new system should look like. Clark Ealy, superintendent of College Station ISD.
“If we build a better mousetrap, I firmly believe that policy makers will follow up,”Tanner says.“We just haven’t been able to offer them a decent alternative until now.”
other types of measures as well to generate a more balanced result.
Kalnbach has seen firsthand the changes that can occur when switching to community-based accountability. For staff at his school, he says it’s put the fun back in teaching.
“We are not anti-test, but the test can’t carry all of the burden,” Simpson says. “When you’re assessing somebody, you sit next to them, you interact with them, you really understand what they’re communicating, and then a test serves to confirm that you’ve assessed things correctly.” Clark Ealy, superintendent of College Station ISD, has been using some form of community-based accountability since he took the position in 2014. As a TPAC member, he is happy to share what he’s experienced with the group in the hopes of creating a more robust accountability system. “As a school district, we’re going through a curriculum rewrite, and we’re going through the process of developing our own learner profile,” Ealy says. “We’re taking our old system and pivoting off of that into this new concept we’ve been developing over the past year with TPAC and the seven pillars that are part of the process.” In Lubbock-Cooper ISD, Deputy Superintendent Macy Satterwhite is working with TPAC while introducing project-based learning and assessments at a new elementary school in the district as a testing ground of sorts. Michael Kalnbach, principal of Glenn Middle School in San Angelo ISD. 18
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“With my teachers, it’s like they’ve realized the profession again for what it was intended to be,” he says. “The joy is coming back. Their eyes are lighting up. It’s been amazing.” Satterwhite agrees that community-based accountability raises teachers to a level of professionalism that they deserve, while also benefiting students. “TPAC gives me hope for the future,” she says. “It gives me hope that we can really improve the educational system in Texas by being transparent and accountable to our stakeholders while still driving for the very best we can do for our students, but doing it in a way that is fair to all and does not punish based on poverty.” For Ealy, developing a new system as they go along is the challenge of being a TPAC member, but an exciting one that he feels is important enough to be worth any difficulty. “It’s going to have a payoff for us as a district, but we’re trying to pay it forward for the entire state to look at a better way to do this,” he says. “We’re excited to be partnering with so many others districts who are doing that work and others jumping in this year to join us. For more information on TPAC, visit https://goo.gl/yPGA6x. Macy Satterwhite, deputy superintendent of Lubbock-Cooper ISD.
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