An Examination of English Teachers' Opinions About the Ontario Grade 9 Reading and Writing Test

Abstract

Interest in the use of large-scale achievement testing for accountability purposes and to drive instructional reform has been increasing in Canada. In the 1995 publications in Interchange, several researchers debated the merits and demerits of standardized achievement testing, including among the latter a tendency to reduce the curriculum and overemphasize routine learning (i.e., "teaching to the test"). Almost no studies have found empirical evidence for such testing's purported benefits. We set out to investigate these issues in Ontario: We present findings from a mail survey designed to find out, from Grade 9 and Grade 10 English teachers in Ontario, their perception of the quality of the Ontario Grade 9 literacy testing program and the effects it has had on the teaching and learning processes. Based on the responses of 107 teachers, our results paint a negative picture of teachers' opinions of the Grade 9 test in terms of its quality and its impact on teaching and learning. Three years after the Grade 9 test was first introduced, Grade 9 and 10 English teachers are still not convinced of its value. Our findings (and those from two other similar surveys) appear to suggest, at least based on teachers' self-reporting, that the purposes of the test — improving the quality of education and learning — as envisioned by the Ontario Ministry of Education and Training have not been met. These findings support those of other assessment impact studies in Canada, namely British Columbia and Alberta, regarding the adverse consequences of large-scale standardized testing (either multiple-choice test or performance-based assessment), and the lack of evidence for its purported positive educational influences. We recommend future research to investigate further the validity and the educational impact of the provincial tests and the reasons responsible for the observed impact or lack of it, and to determine resources, such as teacher training and materials, that are necessary to supplement the provincial testing program's effort to improve teaching and learning.