A microcomputer simulation prepared for use within a masters' degree program in special education was examined with three research concerns in mind: (1) whether teachers would perceive the simulation as a viable simulation of classroom reality; (2) whether teachers using the simulation would interpret simulation descriptions similarly, or, if differently, how the differences would relate to individual teaching perspectives and pedagogical theories; and (3) whether the behaviorist ideology of the simulation design would affect the way users reacted to it, particularly those users with different ideological allegiances. An analysis is presented of the reactions to the simulation of three experienced special education teachers and two teachers in a masters' degree program in elementary education. Findings indicated that: (1) Experienced teachers were not able to perceive the microcomputer simulation as an adequate representation of school reality; (2) The teachers interpreted the simulation situations in terms of their own ideologies and teaching perspectives; and (3) The simulation did not seem to facilitate experiential learning. (JD)