An Examination of Suburban Elementary School Teachers Perceptions of Technology Skills Development and Program Needs Necessary for Mandated Online Testing

Terranova, Cynthia

Dissertation

An Examination of Suburban Elementary School Teachers Perceptions of Technology Skills Development and Program Needs Necessary for Mandated Online Testing

Public Deposited

This study collected teacher perspectives on the impact of mandated high-stakes online testing to identify current needs for teachers and students regarding the development of student technology skills for such assessments. Participants included 41 teachers who instruct students in 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade in any capacity from ten school districts in central New Jersey. A mixed-methods design provided data in the form of an online survey complemented by interviews with nine teachers from online survey participants. No teachers feel that all their students have mastered any of the skills pertinent to high-stakes online testing. Forty-three percent of all participants still feel that fewer than half of their students are prepared to demonstrate what they know in high-stakes online assessment platforms. This finding is critical because even though it has been 5 years since the initial mandate, this testing platform necessitates both students and teachers develop technology skills and classroom integrated practices needed to allow students to utilize the testing platform in high-stakes mandated assessments tacitly. Teachers felt that many, if not all, students still need to develop skills, including keyboarding, typing math expressions, reading online text, and writing online. Teachers feel that there is a need for time to engage in technology professional development. The preferred venue choice is participating in a presentation/workshop with an in district mentor/coach available after the presentation. It is understood that technology is not going away, and beginner technology skills are not inherent. Young students need to be taught these skills the same way they are taught skills with paper and pencil before applying them. Individual school districts need to work together to identify and plan for the best way to integrate the technology skills development of students, especially those with special needs, across all content areas.

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