Accountability in
Jamaican Education: the
state of play
Caribbean Policy Research
Institute
October 29th 2008
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 1

Perspectives on Accountability in
Education
The term –accountability- traditionally linked
to managerial and accounting practices in
both private and public sectors,
and,
politically, to neo-conservatism in the UK of
the 1980 and US of the 1990s.
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 2

Perspectives on Accountability in
Education
In education the term made popular
throughout the 1980’s and into the 90’s
through government reforms of
Conservative Governments - UK, US
Gathered momentum during later 90’s and
into 21st century via work of School
Improvement and Effectiveness
Researchers – UK, Canada and US
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 3

Perspectives cont’d
Introduced into the language of
international funding agencies, as part of
their strategic policy guides, late 1990’s
early 2000.
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 4

Accountability, an IDB Strategy
“and provides a set of objectives and

strategies to guide the IDB in its support
of primary and secondary education over
the next decade. The paper defines five critical
areas of reform— making teachers partners in
reform, providing more and better textbooks
and teaching materials, selectively supporting
the use of technology in education,
decentralizing educational management
and increasing accountability of key
stakeholders,”
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 5

Miller, E. - IDB cont’d
The IDB will support analytical work and

programs to improve teacher incentives
and accountability at the school
level.
Reforming Primary and Secondary Education in Latin America and the
Caribbean, An IDB Strategy Inter-American Development Bank
Washington, D.C. Sustainable Development Department, Sector
Strategy and Policy Papers Series,
March 2000
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 6

Errol Miller, 1999, for World Bank
Introduced into discourse and language of
educators in the Caribbean in the late 1990’s:
“Equalization of public resources goes hand in
hand with the need to strengthen school based
management. Enhanced monitoring and
supervision of schools, clear standards of
accountability for schools, training of school
board members and management training for
principals will all help to strengthen education
financing.” Miller, E.
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 7

Errol Miller, 1999, for WB -1
“Further steps are needed to build up the

assessment program for secondary
education for monitoring and diagnostic
uses, and also to lay the foundation of
an accountability system.”
Report No.19069-JM “Jamaica Secondary Education:

Improving Quality and Extending Access”, Volume 1:
Main Report December 17, 1999 Document of the
World Bank www.wdsworldbank.org.
www.wdsworldbank.org.

Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 8

Former Minister of Education
The White Paper 2001
Among the seven strategic objectives of

the MOEC are: Literacy for all; access,
equity and relevance throughout the
education system; accountability and
performance management in order to
improve performance and win public
confidence and trust; effectiveness and
efficiency of staff; and greater use of
information and communication
technology.
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 9

Former Minister of Education
The Ministry of Education, Youth and

Culture is ensuring closer supervision
and monitoring of the system to
achieve a higher degree of
accountability. This school year, the
new performance evaluation system
designed to improve professionalism
of our teachers will be rolled out
system-wide.
JIS, Sunday, September 05, 2004
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 10

Task Force Report, 2004
The country now has a validated National

Shared Vision for Education, which highlights:
• full stakeholder participation
• equitable and accessible education for all
• accountability, transparency and performance at all levels of the
system
We believe that accountability for
performance is a fundamental issue at all
levels of the system
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 11

“Managerial Accountability”
investment in education is most efficiently

allocated using students as the focus
rather than institutions. It is to this end
that the Task Force is recommending that
Government fund students to a fixed
amount at whatever school they choose
while providing the policy and quality
support to ensure proper operation and
accountability for performance at all
institutions.
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 12

“Democratizing Accountability”
TFR, 2004
Accountability, Transparency and

Performance of the Education System
“Critical stakeholders of our education
system—parents, students, teachers and
all staff, Ministry of Education, school
boards, civil society—are all answerable
to one another within a framework of
sanctions.”
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 13

Value for Money TFR, 2004
The improved systems of accountability

discussed under Accountability for
Performance at all levels are critical pre-
requisites for the ability of the system to
absorb and provide the anticipated
returns on the levels of increased
investment in education that is
required.
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 14

“Managerial and Moral”
Accountability
He said the education ministry was holding itself accountable for

the outcomes in the system.
Minister of Education, Andrew Holness:
\"A challenge is to get our leaders in

education, our education administrators,
instructors, teachers to be accountable for
the outcomes of the Education Ministry. For
too long in our education system, we have not
had a strong spirit of accountability,\" he stated.
Jamaica Observer 24September 04

Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 15

“Professional Accountability”
\"If it is, that after we analyse the Grade Four

Achievement Test and we see that in 1999
nearly 60 per cent were not reading at the
Grade Four level, somebody should be held
accountable and accountability doesn't
mean punishment or sanctions.
Accountability really means that someone
must find a solution,\" the Education Minister
pointed out. KINGSTON (JIS):
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 16

Holding the System Accountable
through Inspections in Jamaica
In the Jamaican context, the following issues have
come to the fore:
 The performance and educational outcomes our
children is unsatisfactory
 Teacher Performance – when linked to student
outcomes, in many cases, this leaves much to
be desired
 Funding of Education expensive on national
pocket, are we getting value for money?
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 17

Holding the System Accountable
through Inspections in Jamaica
Compliance with regulations – financial

and other
Governance matters in relation to -

interpretation and implementation of
educational legislation
Reliability and probity, to a lesser extent,

can educators be trusted – extra lessons,
marking and assessment - bumping up
grades
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 18

Types of Accountability Observed
“In the field of education there are three

main types of accountability systems: a)
compliance with regulations, b) Adherence
to professional norms, and c) results
driven”
Jo Anne Anderson, Accountability in Education, IIEP, UNESCO,

2005
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 19

Preferred Jamaican Model of
Accountability
Self Evaluation by schools, REA’s, TTI

Inspections undertaken by an independent

and autonomous body – National
Education Inspectorate
School or institutional improvement –

emphasis on the profession taking
responsibility for improvement of the
sector with strong support from
decentralized REA
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 20

Components of the Accountability
System ~
Being interrogated are the following:
 “What do we expect students to know and
be able to do?
 How satisfied are we that students have
mastered the established content
standards? (What about values, morals
and spirituality? EFA)
 How are teachers prepared to be effective
in their classrooms with all their students?
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 21

Components of the Accountability
System ~
How and to what degree is the public

informed about school results and the
contributors to those results?
How does society respond to the

information they receive about the
performance of the school?”
Jo Anne Anderson, Accountability in Education, IIEP, UNESCO,

2005
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 22

Inspections and Accountability
Will inspections have any causal effect on the

quality of school performance?
Will schools be driven to “window dressing”?

How do we avoid, the profession collectively,

feeling that accountability is about “the witch-
hunting”?
How do we get the profession to consolidate

their professional responsibility and
accountability to themselves, parents, students
and wider society, rather than seeing
accountability as an external and unnecessary
evil demand? ( Beista, G.J.J., 2004)
Presented by Elaine Foster-Allen 23