90s11 Iowa Department of Education Audit

WACO and Mediapolis were both up to be audited by the Department of Education (D.E.) in the spring of 1991. That means the district turns over just about every type of documentation they have to a team of educators from outside the district who pour over them and then interview staff. The team included people from the D.E. and a few from other districts. It only lasts whirlwind two or three days. It is a lot of work on the district’s part to prepare for it and happens once every five years.

At the end of the audit the team writes their report and then present it as the exit report to the district at open meeting just before they leave. Usually the only people who attend are a few administrators and the team.

I have to say it’s a stretch, a big stretch, to think that observers could look at anything in depth in a multi-million dollar operation that covers all of the curriculum areas, employees hundreds of people and sometimes serves thousands of students. Corporations contract with consultants to evaluate their operations for months before they expect the final written document.

I wrote that the D.E. gave us so little direction in interpreting the standards and what they expect in these audits that it is a big guessing game. They didn’t seem to know what they wanted or expected. I have always felt it was a shallow process that provided little productive input to the district. It just seemed like a ritual that we had to go through periodically and then it was all put on a shelf until the next time.

The conclusions seemed to be far fetched at best. It reminds me of the Indian scout in the movies that draws all kinds of conclusions about riders by looking at a few hoof prints in the dust. The D.E. is the scout and they read these documents and tell us what they mean. Rather, they tell us what they think they mean. Even within the D.E. there is disagreement about interpretations.

Hmmm…big district, lots of paper!
Lots of paper…not very organized!
Uses a lot of education ease…must be doing it right!
Confusing…do they know what that means?
Administrators wear ties…must be very professional!
Formal…not a relaxed learning or working environment.
Licensed teachers…must mean good instruction!
Licensed teachers…but can they teach?
Appropriate documentation…students must be learning!
Documentation…but is it appropriate and relevant?

And on it goes! In recent years there is the expectation of follow-up, an improvement plan, and even another visit from the D.E. so it is a better process. I still think it’s superficial and of limited value. I am sure if the D.E. reads this they might come for another visit. I just believe that people who are deeply involved in the achievement of their learners are interrupted by this process and lose valuable time satisfying the requests of the audit team. We ought to be thinking about how to make it easier for educators to do their jobs, not harder.