Understanding Accountability in Education

Accountability Defined

• Accountability involves responsibility, answerability, blameworthiness, liability, and the expectation of account-giving.
• It encompasses acknowledging and accepting responsibility for actions, products, decisions, and policies at all levels of administration and governance.
• Implementation within a role's or employment position's scope, and the obligation to report, explain, and be answerable for consequences are also part of accountability.
• Accountability evaluates performance or behaviour related to a specific responsibility.
• Corporate accountability requires being answerable to all stakeholders for actions.

Accountability in Education

• In education, accountability involves policies and practices used to measure schools' and districts' progress towards raising student achievement.
• It prompts improvement and uses public funds effectively.
• It ensures administrators diligently pursue educational goals.
• It enhances teaching and learning within the school system.

Educational Accountability

• Educators are accountable "for what" and "to whom" (i.e., for students' results, and to the general public, bureaucracy, and peers).
• Educators are responsible for adhering to rules and regulations, professional norms, and standards.
• Educators are accountable for student learning.

Quality Assurance (QA)

• Quality Assurance is a process to monitor and evaluate project, service, or facility aspects to ensure quality standards are met.
• Key principles of QA include: fitting the product for its intended purpose, and doing things right the first time.
• Total Quality Management (TQM) is a quality assurance approach with systems to monitor processes within an organisation.

Quality Assurance in Schools

• Quality assurance systematically reviews educational programs and processes to maintain and improve quality, equity, and efficiency.
• Quality assurance mechanisms vary by context, but aim to improve teaching and learning.
• Quality assurance approaches include both external (national/regional evaluations, large-scale assessments) and internal (school self-evaluation, staff appraisal, and classroom-based assessments) mechanisms.

School Accreditation

• Accreditation, in total quality management systems, is a mark of adherence to total quality management systems, and audited by the appropriate organisation for quality assurance.
• Accreditation in education is the recognition of an institution or course based on relevant standards and qualifications.
• Accreditation processes are used to ensure that schools, post-secondary institutions, and other educational providers meet, and maintain, minimum standards of quality and integrity for academics, administration, and related services in the U.S.

Why Pursue Accreditation?

• Accreditation helps determine if an institution meets or exceeds minimum quality standards.
• It assists students in determining acceptable institutions for enrolment.
• It provides evidence for employers who often require degrees from accredited schools or programs.

Accreditation Process

• The accreditation process follows a quality planning cycle that includes the following: review, planning, implementation, and monitoring.

School Quality Assurance Committee

• A school quality assurance committee is responsible for setting up a quality assurance system within the school.
• The steps include: preparation for change (dissemination of ideas, changing structure), planning for quality (objectives and needs identification), management of quality (committee and working groups), and implementation (quality model choice, strategic plan development).

Qatar National School Accreditation (QNSA)

• QNSA reviews a school's self-study to validate strengths and areas of improvement based on specific standards.
• QNSA aims to achieve educational system principles, improve standards for educational reform, and ensures a continuous improvement process through self-evaluation and action planning.

Qatar School Accreditation Standards

• QNSA has educational leadership standards (vision, mission, school planning), educational performance and learning standards (curriculum quality, pedagogy, monitoring), care for learners standards (student achievement, student behaviour), resources management standards (staff, professional development and resources), and parental involvement and school community standards.

Application of Standards Form

• The form is used to apply standards for school's mission, vision and evaluation.
• This includes whether all stakeholders are aware of and involved in setting objectives relevant to the school's mission and vision, and aligning the school's mission and objectives with the State's goals and program guidelines.