In 2012, families in California filed a lawsuit alleging that five state statutes governing teacher tenure, dismissal, and seniority together violate the state constitution's requirements for equal protection. Central to the case were competing narratives about the relationship between these statutes, the work of teachers, and the achievement of…

Contemporary education reform movements in the United States have emphasized accountability for student performance. Policy actors serving within the executive branch have arguably gained power in part to provide this accountability function. The present study, in which Ohio and Pennsylvania serve as state case contexts, examines the changing…

Michigan's Local Government and School District Accountability Act of 2011 empowers the governor to appoint emergency managers (EMs) in financially troubled school districts. EMs assume all powers of the superintendent and school board. They can reshape academic programs, nullify labor contracts, and open and close schools. This article analyzes…

Educational accountability policy rests heavily on the assessments used to influence teaching, learning, and school improvement. A long-debated aspect of assessment use, consequential validity, plays an important role in public interpretation of assessment use whether for individual students or for state policy. The purpose of this survey study…

Using critical policy analysis focused on racial-ethnic equity, this study analyses state policy documents and accountability instruments governing transfer from 2-year colleges to 4-year institutions in the following states: California, Florida, Texas, Michigan, Minnesota, Washington, and Wisconsin. Based on data collected in 2009, the findings…

This study considers why Florida has been the most aggressive state in adopting school vouchers. Vouchers are consistent with Florida's tradition of aggressive educational accountability policies, arising from the state's moderate social conservatism, openness to privatization, and state demographic characteristics. Even with this fertile…