The Four Forces of Change: Accountability and Transparency

Increasing Transparency and Accountability is the third of the 4 forces impacting on us as described by Peter Sheahan in his book Flip.

“The digital communications revolution has put global information in the hands of literally billions of individuals, who then can share that information with one another at will.”

Imagine that. Your school’s or district’s test scores can be looked up and examined by people living anywhere in the world the have access to an internet connection. From the parents on your P.T.A, to the teachers across town, to the principals across the country, to professors in the farthest reaches of the globe. You, my friend, are transparent.

The California Department of Education has a site called DataQuest. This site allows anyone with web access to look up and examine school performance data, test scores, student demographic data, school staffing information, student misconduct and intervention data, etc. This is the very definition of transparency. And parents are using this data to make informed decisions about which schools they want their students to attend and even making home buying decisions based on that data. Yep, it’s not just parents who are digging into your school’s information; realtors are using that information to market homes. Who else will soon find a use for your school’s data? It’s out there, transparent for everyone to see.

Educators across the country are acutely aware of the forces of Accountability.

Top Down Accountability: Legislation such as NCLB is making schools more accountable for their results. The federal Department of Education, state departments of education, county offices of education, and districts provide top down accountability. For good or bad, accountability is a factor that impacts education everyday.

Lateral Accountability: Principals, unfortunately, often compete for students by offering programs that will attract students and comparing one school to another. Public schools and private schools have lateral accountability dynamic. Competition is a natural result of all the transparency layered into a space where there are limited resources.

Bottom-up-accountability: Being transparent to the public, the community can make choices about which schools they want to send their students to. If they don’t feel you are meeting their needs, there is a school that will. Parents and teachers are able to spread opinions and views of your school or district via the digital world. Your school or district is apt to be branded good or bad by the views and opinions of the grassroots in your community.

Accountability is here to stay. There is a reason test scores are printed in newspapers and put on the Internet. While it can be difficult, the world we operate in demands accountability and transparency.