Swimming in the Deep End: Struggles of Novice Teachers in the High-Stakes Testing Environment

1. Swimming in the Deep End: Struggles of Novice Teachers in the High-Stakes Testing Environment Dr. Cheryl A. Luton July 2010

2. Problem • the lack of knowledge about the perceptions of novice teachers and their experiences with standardized testing

3. Purpose • to explore the experiences of novice teachers of reading or mathematics (grades 3, 4, or 5) • to gain an understanding of the adequacy of teacher training • to gauge teacher stress levels in preparing the students for standardized tests • to determine novice teachers’ feelings about being evaluated on the basis of high-stakes assessments

4. Theoretical Framework • Ryan’s (1986) stages of beginning teachers • First year teachers begin with fantasy stage and end with impact stage • McCann and Johannessen (2004) indicators of early teacher attrition (need for strong support through induction/mentoring programs) • All of the eight co-researchers had reached impact stage—all had finished at least one year • All expressed a strong need for support

5. Basic Design • The phenomenological approach was used because it allowed the study to focus on “lived experiences” of the participants. • Long interview: Interviews were scheduled with each of the eight co-researchers at their convenience and the same set of questions used for each. • Interviews were audio-recorded for transcription purposes. • Interviews were transcribed, read and listened to multiple times.

6. Design (continued) • Data were searched for themes, meanings, inconsistencies and any significant findings. • QSR International software called NVIVO 8 provided qualitative analysis tools. • The transcriptions of the interviews were uploaded allowing the program to identify themes reflected in the data which were then coded and sent to nodes.

7. Findings: Teacher Preparation • Teacher preparation was perceived inadequate for six out of eight of the participants. • The interview question: How adequately do you feel your college classes and field experiences prepared you for the standards-based classroom? In what way would you change that preparation for future teacher candidates? • Cali said this: “More time student teaching. More time in the classroom. You need it. I don’t remember how long you student teach, maybe three or four months. It’s not enough. I think it should be a year long”.

8. Teacher Preparation • Alisa said this: “Wow—that’s a loaded question. I don’t think that I was adequately prepared by my college classes. Student teaching helped a lot, but I still don’t think that I was prepared for my first year of teaching. We heard about the standard course of study and all of that, but I don’t think [the training] was practical. We would be told to write a lesson plan for the fourth grade today, and we didn’t know anything about the curriculum. We just had to pull things out of the air and fit the course of study around it. I don’t know if there’s any practical way to change that—a longer student teaching, maybe more time in the classroom. I don’t know”.

9. Teacher Preparation • Kerri’s reply: “Um [hesitates] I feel like [3 second pause] a lot of it was busy work that didn’t really happen in the classroom. I feel like ... especially in my last year of math in the classroom ... where I created hundreds of lesson plans that are still sitting in my closet ... aren’t relevant to what you actually do. I think the semester before your student teaching should be more standard-based, should be more mentored with a qualified teacher”.

10. Findings: Perceived Weaknesses • Weaknesses expressed by several participants involved an inadequacy to teach major subject areas such as mathematics and reading—tested subjects. • The interview question: What do you see as your greatest strengths/weaknesses as a new teacher teaching mathematics and reading? • Cali’s: “I still struggle with math. And now they have a new textbook—I’d gotten used to the old textbook—and now I have a whole new textbook and they teach things a totally different way, and I’m learning again”. • Interviewer: Investigations, right? • Cali’s: “Investigations. Every night I go home and read the lesson all over again. It takes a lot to get the concept yourself. So math I still struggle with”.

11. Perceived Weaknesses • Alisa shared: “I think my biggest weakness is differentiating for each student and making sure that I do what I need to do for my IEP students, my AIG students, those in the middle of the road students. I’m very intimidated teaching reading—I really am”.

12. Findings: Student Success is Measured in Growth, not Scores • New teachers reported that student success is not measured by EOG scores, but by student growth. • According to Abby: “They can have growth. They may not be the top student. They don’t have to be the top student to be successful, but growing is the biggest thing. Being able to show they have mastered whatever it is—that’s being successful. Doing their best while they’re trying”. • All eight co-researchers agreed that multiple measures of assessment should be used to measure student achievement.

13. Findings: Student Success is Measured in Growth, not Scores • Danna’s story: “I had kids who couldn’t pass the EOGs—scored a 1 or 2—but to see the pre-scores and the new scores, they showed so much growth. I was so proud of them. I called parents when we got the initial scoring—I don’t know if I was supposed to do this or not—but I called parents and said, “Well, Johnny didn’t pass, but he made tremendous growth. I am so proud of him. So, when he gets home, he’s going to tell you that he didn’t pass. Tell him that you’re proud of him, because he really worked hard. I saw him on the test working out problems. So, my idea of a successful student is one that really tries”.

14. Findings: Stress in EOG Testing Environment • New teachers in this study expressed feelings of stress due to the EOG testing environment. For some it was more serious than for others. All eight admitted to feelings of stress prior to or during testing. • The interview question: Describe your comfort level with state standards and End-of-Grade Tests. (follow-up questions regarding stress were asked when appropriate) • Alisa said, “I think the stress—the pressure—that’s put on teachers is just too much”.

15. Findings: Stress in EOG Testing Environment • Alisa also stated, “What was it really like? It was a whole bottle of emotions. It was very stressful being a first-year teacher because you feel like you have all this pressure on you. You’re not tenured. If you mess up, then you might not be asked back. And that happened with a couple of teachers at my school”.

16. Findings: Stress in EOG Testing Environment • Cali shared: “Mr. [principal] weighs a lot on the EOGs. They’re very important to him, as well as everyone else. But he takes them very seriously. There was a lot of anxiety on my behalf, I guess. It was a very anxious time, a very stressful time. I felt like I was kind of treading water at that time. I kind of had to go over the test-taking stuff with them, because I didn’t know what was taught to them last year. So, I had to make sure I covered it myself. But it’s so stressful! I know it’s going to be the worst in here. I’m not looking forward to that. Please, I don’t want to think about that right now”.

17. Findings: New Teacher Support • New teacher support is critical to success (administrator, mentor, colleagues and professional development). • Interview question: Teachers were asked to describe the level of support they received from administrators, mentors, colleagues and professional development. • All eight co-researchers agreed that a full array of new teacher support is vital to success.

18. Findings: Pressure Causes Teaching to the Test • Pressure to prepare for EOGs causes teachers in this study to “narrow the curriculum” or “teach to the test,” leaving out some areas of the curriculum that are non-tested. • Cali admitted that she was “teaching to the test” during her interview. • The eight co-researchers overwhelmingly agreed that there is not enough time to adequately cover the standards for the tested courses and the non-tested courses like social studies and science.

19. Interpretations • There is a need for improvement in teacher education programs. • Teachers in the three counties in this study had very similar views regarding the pressures of EOGs. I think novice teachers in other areas of the state and country may have similar views. • Further studies should be done so that policy-makers will have the evidence they need to make changes.

20. Interpretations • Standardized testing in NC has affected the curriculum. Teachers are being held accountable for student scores so they will teach what is tested. • New teachers expressed a fear of losing their jobs because their students might not score high enough on the tests.

21. Implications • Since my study was done, Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan, addressed the need for “revolutionary change” in some of our best schools of education (2009). • How can we make sure our students are getting the best preparation for the standards-based classroom?

22. Implications • New teachers know that one-time, multiple-choice tests do not adequately measure the achievement of their students. • Effective assessment practices should be studied further and results presented to legislators or change-makers.

23. Implications • Is there a connection between new teacher attrition and teacher preparedness, support, or pressure to perform on standardized testing? My study did not answer this question, but there could be a connection and this should be explored further.

24. References Duncan, A. (2009, October). Teacher Preparation: Reforming the Uncertain Profession—Remarks of Secretary Arne Duncan at Teachers College, Columbia University. Retrieved from http://www.ed.gov/news/speeches/2009/10/10222009.html