Accountability - a definition?

It would appear from some of the comments received in response to my post on accountability that there is a problem with a shared understanding of the word.

If, as I'm coming round to think, accountability is the key to unlock (or lock) the door of school improvement then a robust, coherent and shared definition is an essential requirement.

The definition of what accountability actually is NOT, might be just as important as a definition of what it is. My logic here is that many of wrap the accountability blanket round us for security to excuse our actions - "We have to do it this way because we are accountable to..xxxxxx..." x = boss; the system; the organisation.

What is obvious from any analysis of the word is that it has several meanings - often dependent upon the context within which it is being used. What interests me is how a reasonable definition in one context , e.g politicsy, can have a distorting effect when transposed to another context, e.g. education.

Over the next series of posts I'll consider each these various definitions, their effect upon our behaviour and then try to propose a definition that might underpin our practice in East Lothian.