Teacher's self-assessment of changes in their use of instructional strategies as a result of the state-mandated testing program

The educational policies created by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 and the Public Schools Accountability Act of 1999 stipulate an assessment and accountability model that mandates how schools are to measure a student's academic success. In these accountability models, each district and school is held accountable for student learning. Teachers are held accountable only by implication. This research shows that such collective accountability does influence changes in individual teacher's instructional behavior. This study sought to determine if the implementation of California's state-mandated test system has resulted in teachers changing their (1) instructional strategies (IS), (2) teaching techniques (TT), and (3) instructional materials they use in the classroom (IM). This study also considered possible factors that may have motivated the changes the teachers implemented. These factors were grouped into four categories; (1) intrinsic motivational factors, (2) test format, (3) factors external to school such as fear of being placed in program improvement or possible financial sanctions imposed upon the school, and (4) interaction with others such as the site principal or parents. Survey research was the primary methodology used for this study and included three school districts in the Southern California area. The time period studied was 2006/07 to 2009/10. The survey results revealed that teachers made significant changes in the three areas of IS, TT and IM. Respondents indicated that they changed their instructional behaviors in all 29 of the 29 items surveyed. Significant increases in the regular use of written assignment, problem solving, multiple-choice, response journal, and rubric scoring were reported. These changes appear to be influenced by the type and style of questions used in the Content Standards Test and the California High School Exit Exam. The final question posed by this research looked to determine the factors that may have influenced the instructional changes the teachers reported. The analysis revealed none of the factors surveyed influenced changes to the teacher's instructional strategies (IS). It did, however, indicate the factors of intrinsic motivation and years of experience influenced changes to their teaching techniques (TT). Finally, the factors of intrinsic, external to school, experience, and test format influenced changes to the teacher's use of instructional materials (IM).