At her presentation Josilda shared her study concerning the influence of tests on EFL curriculum implementation. In her pilot study she raised three questions: What effects does assessment have on the students? When, what and how are students assessed and tested? Are students given the possibility to self – assess or peer – assess?
Photo credits: Christina Chorianopoulou
As a
result of her study she came to the conclusion that tests and assessments make
students learn more as they needed to achieve good results. Before, during and
after the process, they felt under great psychological pressure which has a
negative impact on their exam results. It turned out that grammar and writing
exercises prevailed in comparison with other types of testing articles, in
particular there are only a few testing items on word order and absolutely no
testing in listening. Josilda explained
that there is a substantial difference between the word order in Albanian and
English languages. But since it is not tested, teachers don’t teach it in
schools. The same concerns the listening and speaking skills. As a result, when
students come to real life, they appear to be not ready to communicate in
English. As for peer and self-assessment,
learners agree that teachers don’t give them the possibility to assess
themselves or their classmates. It is
worth mentioning that there are many students who require more tests and more
assessment activities by their teachers before they could set them a grade.
Josilda hopes that her study will see clearer
the relationship between examinations conducted in high schools and the stated
curriculum goals.
By Lana Lemeshko
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