Pausing for Answerability: A Critical Investigation of U.S. Assessment and Accountability Decisions Amidst the covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

This paper takes up Leigh Patel's (2016) methodological stance of pausing to consider how and whether the U.S. federal government's theory of educational change, or their plan for educational equity and accountability, is answerable to Black, Indigenous, and students of color in the context of the global pandemic, the switch to remote learning, and global uprisings for Black lives. To discuss the federal government's current theory of educational change, we (the authors) conducted a policy document review, outlining the U.S.'s educational response(s) to the ongoing global health crisis. The paper reports on current federal law requirements and waivers for: assessments, accountability, reporting, and school identification. We also discuss how the federal educational response is limited for addressing the context and learning of Black, Indigenous and students of color. We practice answerability by positing alternative approaches for educational policymaking in the age of covid-19.