Juggling multiple accountability systems: how three principals manage these tensions in Ontario, Canada

Accountability in education is not new. Schools have always been accountable in one way or another to the communities they serve, regardless of the policy environment of the time (Elmore, The Educational Forum, 69:134–142, 2005). This article explores how three principals from Ontario, Canada manage the tensions of multiple accountability systems in their work. Findings indicate that the principals were able to find ways to be accountable to a variety of communities and ideals by prioritizing and honoring local needs and beliefs within the larger provincial mandate. Principals could not ignore the various accountability pressures; indeed, their success hinged on the ability to negotiate them. This delicate balancing act requires school principals to develop skills necessary to successfully juggle these competing demands

Recently identified microbial guild mediates soil N₂O sink capacity

Nitrous oxide (N2O) is the predominant ozone-depleting substance and contributes approximately 6% to overall global warming1,2. Terrestrial ecosystems account for nearly 70% of total global N2O atmospheric loading, of which at least 45% can be attributed to microbial cycling of nitrogen in agriculture3. The reduction of N2O to nitrogen gas by microorganisms is critical for mitigating its emissions from terrestrial ecosystems, yet the determinants of a soil’s capacity to act as a source or sink for N2O remain uncertain4. Here, we demonstrate that the soilN2Osink capacity is mostly explained by the abundance and phylogenetic diversity of a newly described N2O-reducing microbial group5,6, which mediate the influence of edaphic factors. Analyses of interactions and niche preference similarities suggest niche di erentiation or even competitive interactions between organisms with the twotypes of N2O reductase.We further identified several recurring communities comprised of co-occurring N2O-reducing bacterial genotypes that were significant indicators of the soil N2O sink capacity across di erent European soils