This investigation sought to determine how seventh-grade social studies teachers perceive TAAS objectives for social studies, language arts, and mathematics and how they apply them in the classroom. A detailed questionnaire was submitted to fifty teachers in the Dallas metropolitan area; a 72 percent. return was received. Though teachers expressed a favorable attitude toward emphasizing the higher-level thinking objectives, many indicated that their lesson plans and teaching methods have remained unchanged in the past year. The data suggests that teachers want and need additional training and teaching resources to satisfy the call for incorporating performance-based assessment into the classroom curriculum. TAAS standards cannot drive the intended curriculum improvements without a model for reorienting instructional practices.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of Project SAIL, a program designed to increase student achievement through interdisciplinary learning, upon the achievement, attendance, and attitude toward school of the ninth grade students who participated in it. The study also identified its benefits and liabilities from the perspective of teachers and students.