| During the last decade standards-based reform and test-based accountability systems have been widely implemented. The 1997 Amendments to the Individuals with Disabilities Act and the more recent 2001 passage of the No Child Left Behind Act require that students with disabilities participate in state assessments. However, state testing programs were often designed without these students in mind. This study examines the perceptions of special educators with regard to the impact of state testing programs on classroom practices and student learning using data from a national survey of teachers. Specifically, perceptions related to the impact of state testing programs on school climate, pressure felt by teachers, alignment of classroom practices with the content and format of the state test, and their effects on the content and method of instruction are explored. Also, teachers' views concerning the perceived value of the testing program, and school, teacher, and student accountability are examined. In addition, special educators' views are compared with those held by teachers in general education settings. Using discriminant analysis techniques, the study tests the hypothesis that there is no difference between the views of special and general educators as indicated by a lack of significant group separation on a linear combination of variables. Variables related to school climate, classroom practices, and accountability emerged as strong predictors for distinguishing between special and general educators. Findings reveal that general educators were significantly more likely to hold positive perceptions of their school's climate, indicate greater alignment of their classroom practices with the state test, and find the uses of test results to make consequential decisions about students more appropriate than did their special education counterparts. In contrast to these disparities, special and general educators held similar views concerning the value of their state test, the effect of the state testing program on instructional content, and the use of test results to hold schools and teachers accountable for student test performance. |
