10—Lancaster Forming. Saturday. October 24.1970
Making Schools ‘Accountable’ To Citizens
Will Revitalize Education, Educator Says
Retorting to President
Nixon's Education Message of
last March, Dr. Leon M. Lev
singer told Pennsylvania school
directors at their statewide con
vention in Pittsburgh
“A growing number of in
fluential people aic becoming
convinced that it is possible to
hold the schools, as other im
portant agencies in the public
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and pnvale sector are held, to
account for the results of their
activity."
He chaigcd that, basically, ac
countability is a policy declara
tion by a legal body, such as a
school board or stale legisla
ture, requning icgular outside
leports of dollais spent to
achieve results
"To achieve this," Lcssingcr
said, "is to shift the principal
focus in the school system from
input to output, from teaching
to learning"
Lessmgei believes that plac
ing the emphasis on learning
will lead to a by-pi oduct of ac
countability. a icviscd educa
tional national commitment.
He also noted that the chal
lenge of accountability will lead
to a • can do spu it of enter
prise, a willingness to change a
system which does not work
and find one that does ”
Also he said a third major
effect of accountability centers
on the technology of instruc
tion "Fiom an oi gamzational,
manager lal and technological
point of view, education is a
cottage industiy"
As an example, he said,
•Teacheis and students barely
understand the breadth of use
to which the household tele-
phone can be used to gather
knowledge
"While the telephone is be
ing ledesigned to opeiate in
milliseconds undei automated
commands foi slave effort, edu
cation is just beginning to cope
with the manual dial ”
He said the “energy of ac
countability” is available capi
tal in a predictable and secure
mannei foi lesponsible invest
ment
This news release by the
Pennsylvania School Boards
Association presents the
highlights of a speech at the
Association's annual conven
tion October 15 by Dr. Leon
M. Lcssingcr, Georgia State
University. Dr. Lcssingcr is a
former Associate U.S. Com
missioner for Elementary
and Secondary Education.
“Business typically budgets
amounts varying fiom 3 to 15
per cent for improved products,
services, sales or capability. Un
til recent federal legislation,
there was virtually no compar
able money in education Now
it is estimated that there is
approximately one-third of one
per cent available as develop
mental capital.”
Recognition of expanded as
sessment of results is a fifth
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major effect of accountability
on school reform, Lessmgcr
said. ‘‘For too long many have
confused measurement of re
sults in education with stand
ardized achievement testing of
paper and pencil of the noi mal
curve-based variety. Not every
thing in education can be or
ought to be quantified in
such a manner," he added.
Besides listing several meth
ods of measuring educational
results, Lessinger pointed to the
outside review component as
the most “vital mode of pi oof
of accountability.”
“An outside review tied to a
public repoit probably explains
the populauty of the emerging
concept of accountability to the
public at laige ”
He added, “Schools in Ameri
ca serve and ai e accountable to
the citizenry, not the profes
sionals.”
Lessinger pointed to the
“ ‘'V
' *P*’
**>*
farmers
delicious
change proem that require*
adaptation of Rood practice and
adoption, lie said, “educational
cnßinccrinß" i« the rapidly
cmcrßlnß field dcaigned to pro*
ducc personnel with compet
ence in this change process.
"This development of a coher
ent body of knowledge and'pro
ccdurc represents another step
in accountability."
"The heart of the education
engineering process is the par
forma nee contract," he said.
“Performance contracting is
not new to education. But' the
concept of holding an educa
tional agency accountable for
results is.”
Pursuit of accountability may
(Continued on Page 11)
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