Mind the Gaps: Differences in How Teachers, Principals, and Districts Experience College- and Career-Readiness Policies

Critics of standards-based reform often cite an accountability policy environment that disproportionately affects teachers compared with principals and district officials. We directly examine this disproportionality. In our three study states of Texas, Ohio, and Kentucky, we use survey analysis to understand how policy environments for district officials, principals, and teachers differ. We find that in all three states, teachers report experiencing significantly more accountability than do principals. Teachers in every state also report significantly lower authority toward their state’s standards. In Texas, these authority gaps predict less coverage of English language arts standards.