The Council for Eduactional Standards and Accountability (CESA, www.cesaschools.org) recently published my thoughts on accountability. A few readers asked if I would post the short commentary on our school blog. Here it is:
“We need a culture of accountability in America’s educational system, if we want to be the best in the world.” - Arne Duncan, U.S. Secretary of Education
Mr. Duncan’s exhortation resonates with me for three reasons.
One, it’s true. Every presidential administration in our lifetime has said the same thing. Despite political mudslinging, the essence of No Child Left Behind remains intact three years into the new administration. When the longstanding Elementary and Secondary Education Act is reauthorized in 2011 or 2012, the thrust of the mandate will remain the same: public schools must be accountable for their mission, promises, student outcomes and public funding through a rigorous set of standards and benchmarks.
Two, of all our nation’s schools, religious and independent schools are the most accountable. If we do not fulfill our mission and promises, if we do not produce competitive outcomes, our ability to fulfill our raison d’etre will quickly atrophy. The paying public can quickly decide to direct their voluntary funding elsewhere. As schools of choice, we have the present opportunity and advantage to lead the charge of accountability and prove to a skeptical public that educational excellence is not only possible - it is verifiable.
Finally, like you, I long for American education to regain international stature – “to be the best in the world,” as Mr. Duncan exhorts. More and more, Americans speak with civic chagrin. Our exceptional economic and educational leadership has been snake-bitten. But , Mr. Duncan identifies the antidote - authentic accountability. Politics aside, what if it’s that simple?
For thirty years, the span of my career in educational leadership, we have played tug of war with the mantra of accountability. We’ve talked the talk. But, if we’re honest, in the self-righteous guise of ministry, we may have balked. Deflecting accountability for fear of governmental intrusion, we may have lost our voice in the public debate about how to be the best schools in the world. Too often, we follow and do not lead. And, the path we follow is too often a path of false humility. For fear of pride, we are reticent to aspire to be the best, to give a truthful account of excellence. In so doing, we handicap our advantage. May I suggest three sources of bona fide accountability for every Christian school?
First, we are accountable to truth. Taking Jesus at his word, there is no argument - the Word of God is truth. Our accountability is first and foremost to God.
Second, we are accountable to the marketplace. Keeping promises is a mark of integrity. When we enroll a student, we are responsible to provide a competitive, virtuous education that will prepare a child for a competitive marketplace in need of virtue. The church’s mandate is to make disciples; it is a school’s mandate to educate; it is the Christian school’s mandate to educate in the name and truth of Jesus Christ.
Third, we are accountable to one another. If we do not hold each other accountable for our results, we will lose our way and public opinion of our school will spiral into a deeper cynicism than currently exists. There must be trustworthy benchmarks for earnest Christian schools to measure, compare and discern what is BEST in order to fulfill their commitment to moms and dads.
CESA espouses a unique fraternity of like-minded schools that understand accountability to God, the marketplace and each other. I yearn for this vision because I yearn for accountability to the best. Sobering and humbling as it is, I want to learn from exceptional schools that are not satisfied; I want to learn from schools that have set a high bar. I want to learn from men and women who want to “run with horses.” (Jeremiah 12:5) For three decades, my career motto has been: “Let faith and intellect excel - at the same time, in the same place.” CESA, thanks be to God, wants to hold me to account for these easy words.
Bring it on.
Gary B. Arnold
