Maryland, the first state to mandate performance assessments for its elementary school students, administers the Maryland School Performance Assessment Program as a week-long series of activities measuring reading, writing, language in use, science, and social studies for students in grades 3, 5, and 8. Open-ended questions are built around activities or tasks that often involve hands-on manipulation. Urban teachers at 144 Baltimore City Public School sites, in Baltimore (Maryland), and school-based staff were surveyed regarding the program, with attention to procedural items (teacher comfort with mechanical aspects of these tests), preparation and administration, and attitudes about the tests. Of 1,436 forms distributed, 404 were returned, a response rate of just over 28 percent. Results show that tests were rated most positively for grade 8, less so for grade 5, and somewhat negatively for grade 3. Teachers expressed concerns about being underprepared for the activities, and concerns about methods of administration. Overall reviews of the tests were equivocal. Although 48 percent rated the tests as not essentially worthwhile, most respondents felt that they measured thinking skills better than multiple-choice tests did, and most felt that the tests would change educational practices. Four tables present survey findings. (SLD)