Exploring Bebines Efl Teacher S Perceptions Of The Assessment Of Speaking Skills In Two Public Schools Of Abomey Calavi

Exploring Bebines EFL Teacher's Perceptions of the Assessment of Speaking Skills in Two Public Schools of Abomey-Calavi

Scientific Study from the year 2016 in the subject Pedagogy - Miscellaneous Topics, , language: English, abstract: The present study focuses on the assessment of oral skills during lifelike situations in normal classrooms in Beninese secondary schools. Quantitative data (questionnaire) was collected from 20 EFL teachers from two schools. The results show that teachers felt that it is difficult to assess oral skills, and the most common reason for this was the lack of time, which again was the cause of big class sizes and tight schedule. It also seemed that the assessment they do is not consistent, and that there are a lot of personal differences between teachers, and these differences influence their classrooms massively. When they did find time for assessment, teachers focused mostly on aspects of oral language such as vocabulary and pronunciation.

The Perception of Tanzanian EFL Teachers Regarding the Use of Performance-based Assessments to Promote Spoken English Language in Secondary Schools

I examined Tanzanian secondary EFL teachers' attitudes toward language performance-based assessments (PBA). I asked Tanzanian EFL teachers about PBA's benefits, challenges, and potential solutions to the identified challenges after two rounds of webinars introducing PBA as an alternative assessment approach that promotes classroom interaction, participation, and critical thinking. Together with teachers, we evaluated textbook activities and practiced using PBA tools such as group discussions and rubrics. I collected data through surveys and semi-structured interviews. I utilized group and interpretative coding per Kostere and Kostere's (2021) theoretical coding guide to analyze the data thematically. The findings revealed that teachers perceived PBA as a beneficial assessment practice that can help students improve their English proficiency. The benefits identified included: PBA facilitates feedback, increased exposure to the language, increased confidence to speak the language and to participate in the classroom, and promotes students' motivation.However, PBA implementation was equally challenging for some teachers. The challenges included teachers' lack of time and skills to design materials, a wide competency gap between students, pressure from administrators to teach for tests, and a lack of support from teachers of other subjects. I also suggested ways to overcome Tanzanian EFL classroom PBA challenges. Solutions included making textbook tasks performative, creating a safe and joyful learning environment, and embracing multilingualism to assist students in overcoming their fear of speaking. Overall, the study found that Tanzanian EFL teachers perceive PBA as a beneficial assessment practice that can help students improve their English proficiency. However, I also found certain challenges to PBA in Tanzanian EFL classrooms. Future studies should address these issues and help teachers implement PBA.

An Exploration of EFL Teachers' Perceptions of the Teaching of Communication Strategies