ABSTRACT
Educational accountability has been studied and defined in different ways, resulting in analytic and descriptive typologies outlining the types, aims, mechanisms, and demands of accountability policy. US public school districts and their schools vary due to differing state policies, economic conditions, and the socio-political milieu of the communities they serve. According to the US Census Bureau, Minnesota's population was estimated at 5,420,380 in 2013. Of Minnesotans aged 25 and above, 91.9 percent are high school graduates. According to the National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP), the Nations Report Card, the gaps between White and Black students have shrunk between 1971 and 2012. A few principals indicated that performance-based accountability raised the bar of expectations for student achievement among all learners. The introduction of the Minnesota Multiple Measurement Ratings (MMRs) has helped principals, especially in suburban schools by focusing on closing the achievement gaps while buffering struggling students and their parents from being blamed for the school failure to make AYP.
