New Teaching Standards and Old Tests: Dangerous Mismatch?

As almost every state attempts to reform mathematics instruction by implementing new teaching standards, state testing practices remain largely unchanged. Is there a mismatch between these new standards and the old tests? This question is investigated by examining whether middle school and high scho...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author Mayer, Daniel P
Format Report
LanguageEnglish
Published 01.03.1997
Subjects
Algebra
Educational Change
High School Students
High Schools
Mathematics Achievement
Mathematics Instruction
Middle School Students
Middle Schools
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
State Programs
Test Results
Testing Programs
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Summary:As almost every state attempts to reform mathematics instruction by implementing new teaching standards, state testing practices remain largely unchanged. Is there a mismatch between these new standards and the old tests? This question is investigated by examining whether middle school and high school algebra students taught in a manner consistent with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) "Professional Standards" performed differently on three standardized algebra assessments than students taught in traditional classrooms. The data come from 94 teachers, 2,369 students, and 40 schools in 1 of the nation's largest school districts. Results indicate that a mismatch does not exist between the "Standards" and the old tests. In fact, middle school algebra students whose teachers spent more time using the NCTM teaching approach had higher growth rates than students whose teachers spent less time using the approach. However, students with higher ability levels benefited more. The growth rates of the lowest achieving students, the high school students (who were disproportionately poor and black), were not helped or hindered by the NCTM teaching approach. This study provides policymakers with evidence that traditional multiple choice tests do not directly undermine the standards movement in this one school district. On the other hand, old tests will not provide teachers of low-achieving students with any incentive to adopt the "Standards." (Contains 2 figures, 8 tables, and 50 references.) (Author)