Evaluating Early Evidence on the Implementation of Accountability Report Cards

For the first time under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), states and districts were mandated in 2003 to produce accountability report cards presenting information on the performance of states, districts and schools during the 2002-03 year. Though for many states, NCLB simply added new requirements to existing reporting systems. NCLB states that production of report cards is intended to hold schools accountable by providing parents with information to make better choices and educators and communities with information necessary to mount improvement efforts. Preliminary analysis of accountability report cards produced by state agencies in California, Georgia and Pennsylvania and a sample of school districts from each state indicates that current report card have a number of limitations that impede their ability to contribute to improved educational outcomes. This paper examines preliminary evidence on the content, format and accessibility of report cards produced at the state, district and school levels, with attention to how the results of this analysis relate to the purposes of accountability reporting espoused by NCLB. It concludes with recommendations for report card developers based on this analysis and other research on accountability reporting from the education and healthcare sectors.