Journal for Learning through the Arts

This study describes three teachers and their experiences of an arts-integration reform model amidst the high-stakes accountability movement. Their struggle to practice arts integration within their school district, a culture in which high-stakes testing is prioritized is described by way of a circus metaphor. Through the theoretical lens of Self Determination Theory (SDT), we use our metaphor to uncover a circus whose performance rings are guided by three ringmasters or school administrators who have different management styles and expectations for achieving district mandates. When examining the data, we found that the way in which each school responds to the high-stakes testing demands seems to have a direct relationship to the level of teacher self-regulation. The teachers are described thematically as Susie, characterized as Cracking the Whip, who exhibits controlled, externally-regulated motivation; Mary, identified as Walking the Tightrope, represents self-regulation through identification; and Fiona, described as Flying the Trapeze, displays an integrated self-regulatory style.