Consequences of National Testing of Primary School Pupils Through the Eyes of Teachers

Abstract

The study deals with the consequences of national testing at the primary school level on the processes of education, teachers’ work in the classroom and the teaching profession. It is based on the international discourse about the consequences of large-scale testing and investigates Slovak teachers’ opinions and measures they have implemented under the influence of testing in their own instruction and school. The research, carried out by the questionnaire method on a sample of 786 (2017) and 940 (2020) respondents, confirms that teachers perceive national testing as too far from instruction and inconsistent with educational standards. They do not believe it can fulfil the set goals, but, on the other hand, because of it, they narrow down instruction to prepare for tests and take measures that do not change the quality of pupil learning.