Teachers' Experiences of Assessing Elementary Students: A Qualitative Phenomenological Study

This qualitative transcendental phenomenological study examines teachers’ experiences assessing elementary students in Southeastern North Carolina. This study is based on constructivist theory. Constructivism, with its collaborative founders, is a theory that focuses on the learner making meaning based on their experiences. This theory, though considered a learning theory, is imperative to this study as it helps to frame how educators make meaning from their experiences of assessing elementary students. The theory’s tenets create a guide for the mission of the study and form the research questions to be addressed. This is a qualitative phenomenological study. A qualitative design is based on the exploration of a problem or phenomenon. It is exploratory in nature and allows the researcher to gain an understanding from the findings. The study took place in Southeastern North Carolina, with samples coming from four different counties. The study included 11 participants. Data was collected using three methods: questionnaires, semi-structured interviews, and journal prompts. Once the data were collected, Moustakas’ phenomenological data analysis method was used to analyze the collected data. The interview data were transcribed using a transcription service. Open coding was used to analyze the data further. Information was checked thoroughly for validity and reliability, and findings were reported.