Governor's Task Force on Efficiency and Accountability in K-12 Education December 18, 2001
According to this brief report by Arizona Governor Jane Hull's Task Force on Efficiency and Accountability in K-12 Education, Arizona has no time to waste in implementing standards-based accountability. Citing low achievement, the fact that curricula are not aligned to standards in more than half the state's schools, and a system that is "morally and economically unacceptable," the task force sets forth a series of recommendations to bolster accountability and make good use of the additional funds provided by Proposition 301, which authorized a sales tax increase to support K-12 education. Endorsing Arizona LEARNS, the school accountability plan developed by Superintendent of Public Instruction Jaime Molera, the report calls for: 1) aligning all curricula at every grade level to the state's academic standards; 2) implementing the state Department of Education's "Purposeful Accountability System" which includes greater reporting and dissemination of student and school performance data; 3) implementing a statewide program of student achievement awards and teacher pay-for-performance linked to student achievement; 4) turning underperforming schools around; and 5) directing financial resources toward student achievement. The report describes the "next steps" that must be taken - some requiring legislation, some not - to carry out the task force's recommendations. Puzzled readers may well wonder why this is all again under discussion in a state that's already been through the development of sound academic standards, new tests and accountability systems (as well as the country's largest charter-school program). The short answer, as we observe these matters from afar, is that Molera, the Governor's Task Force, and some legislators are backing away from the "high stakes" approach of former superintendent Lisa Graham Keegan and instead embracing strategies (such as those outlined above) favored by Arizona's public school establishment. We are, accordingly, underwhelmed, but if you'd like to see this pious report for yourself you can find a PDF version at http://www.wested.org/online_pubs/arizona.pdf.