No Child Left Behind: High-stakes testing and teacher burnout in urban elementary schools.

摘要

The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 calls for 100% proficiency in reading and mathematics by 2014. The mandate thus transforms reading and mathematics into high-stakes subject areas. This quantitative cross-sectional study examined legislated testing mandates in relation to burnout subscales, emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and personal accomplishment. Second through fifth grade high-stakes reading and mathematics teachers and low-stakes art, music, and physical education teachers working in an urban elementary school district completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory - Educator Survey and a demographic survey. Results showed a significant difference in emotional exhaustion among high-stakes versus low-stakes subject area teachers across grade levels and school labels. Since burnout impedes job performance, results suggest the achievement gap may widen because of the very legislation instituted to close it.