View in EDS

The Fall of Accountability: Federal Education Politics in an Era of Polarization and Regime Decay. EdWorkingPaper No. 26-1492

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: The Fall of Accountability: Federal Education Politics in an Era of Polarization and Regime Decay. EdWorkingPaper No. 26-1492
Language: English
Authors: Drayton Willey, Sarah Reckhow, Alexandra Stinson-Swartout, Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University
Source: Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. 2026.
Availability: Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University. Brown University Box 1985, Providence, RI 02912. Tel: 401-863-7990; Fax: 401-863-1290; e-mail: annenberg@brown.edu; Web site: https://annenberg.brown.edu/
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 45
Publication Date: 2026
Document Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Descriptors: Accountability, Politics of Education, Educational Policy, Educational Change, Educational Legislation, Federal Legislation, Political Attitudes, Hearings, Elementary Secondary Education, Presidents, Equal Education, Gender Issues, Curriculum
Laws, Policies and Program Identifiers: No Child Left Behind Act 2001
Abstract: Twenty-five years ago, the United States was on the cusp of a major expansion of the federal government's role in K-12 education policy. The No Child Left Behind legislation passed with bipartisan support and established standards and accountability as strategies to improve education. Until roughly 2013, reading and math scores did improve; however, in the years since, student achievement on test scores has gone down, and this trend accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the last decade, with new and rising challenges for educational outcomes, how has the politics of education at the federal level changed? What happened to bipartisan support for the standards-based accountability regime, and what has replaced it? We code and analyze longitudinal data on changes in party positions, congressional hearings, and executive action on education. After the adoption of No Child Left Behind ushered in a bipartisan education accountability policy regime, K-12 education started to recede from the Congressional agenda. Since 2015, growing attention to K-12 education from the executive branch and increasing partisan polarization around culture war issues have eroded the accountability regime. Executive actions during the Biden and Trump presidencies have steered education towards a broader array of high conflict issues focused on racial equity, gender, and curriculum. These changes have produced policy regime decay and little consistency or direction for state and local policymakers in K-12 education.
Abstractor: As Provided
Entry Date: 2026
Accession Number: ED681931
Database: ERIC
Description
Abstract:Twenty-five years ago, the United States was on the cusp of a major expansion of the federal government's role in K-12 education policy. The No Child Left Behind legislation passed with bipartisan support and established standards and accountability as strategies to improve education. Until roughly 2013, reading and math scores did improve; however, in the years since, student achievement on test scores has gone down, and this trend accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the last decade, with new and rising challenges for educational outcomes, how has the politics of education at the federal level changed? What happened to bipartisan support for the standards-based accountability regime, and what has replaced it? We code and analyze longitudinal data on changes in party positions, congressional hearings, and executive action on education. After the adoption of No Child Left Behind ushered in a bipartisan education accountability policy regime, K-12 education started to recede from the Congressional agenda. Since 2015, growing attention to K-12 education from the executive branch and increasing partisan polarization around culture war issues have eroded the accountability regime. Executive actions during the Biden and Trump presidencies have steered education towards a broader array of high conflict issues focused on racial equity, gender, and curriculum. These changes have produced policy regime decay and little consistency or direction for state and local policymakers in K-12 education.