Testing or Learning: Teachers’ Perceptions on School Practices

Barbara J. Brown, Joanne C. Dacek, Saundra W. Simonée, Amanda Lowry, Elsa Sofia Morote, Albert Inserra
(School of Education, Dowling College, Brookhaven Campus, NY 11967, USA )

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine teachers’ perceptions of professional development and instructional practices. Perceptions of teachers whose school’s focus was on student learning were contrasted with perceptions of teachers whose school’s focus was on test scores. This study used a questionnaire to examine 92 suburban New York teachers’ perceptions of two variables: instructional practices and professional development. The questionnaire was distributed at a faculty meeting. The findings indicated that teachers who perceive that their schools value student learning have more professional development opportunities and use higher level instructional practices than teachers in schools valuing test scores.

Key words: testing, school climate, professional development, instructional practices