This study sought to determine the beliefs of curriculum directors within the
public school districts of Indiana with regard to the purpose of education and to the
impact of high-stakes testing. The six cultures of curriculum described by Joseph et al.
(2000) were utilized to provide the lens through which curriculum directors could view
the overall curriculum of their individual districts. For the purpose of this study, the
curriculum director was defined as the person at the district level most responsible for the
organization and implementation of the curriculum. The researcher first sought to
determine the culture supported personally by curriculum directors and the culture
believed to be most prevalent within their districts. In relation, the researcher further
wished to learn if directors believed high-stakes testing served a valid purpose within the
context of their personally supported culture or the one perceived to be most prevalent.
Finally, the researcher sought to determine if directors believed the pressure to perform
well on high-stakes tests had an influence upon their decision-making in relation to
curricular changes. Data from 136 (46.6%) of Indiana’s 292 public school districts showed
Constructing Understanding, defined as “Developing in students the ability to think
independently and to build knowledge from the information they gather through
observation and collaboration” (Appendix E), was selected by 64.4% of the respondents
as the curriculum culture most in agreement with their personal beliefs. When asked to
identify the curriculum culture perceived to be most prevalent within their school
districts, Training for Work and Survival, defined as “Providing students the necessary
skills to allow them to be both effective and adaptive in the workplace and in society”
(Appendix E), was selected by 66.9% of respondents. With respect to perceived pressure
related to high-stakes testing, 73.5% indicated the pressure significantly impacts or has
the greatest impact on my decision-making; 73.7% felt significant to extreme pressure for
their students to perform well on ISTEP+ and the ECAs; and, 63.6% reported feeling
moderate to extreme pressure to encourage teachers to teach to the test. / Department of Educational Leadership
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:BSU/oai:cardinalscholar.bsu.edu:123456789/195131 |
| Date | 10 January 2012 |
| Creators | Goeglein, Steven L. |
| Contributors | Quick, Marilynn M. |
| Source Sets | Ball State University |
| Detected Language | English |
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