Test Construction Practices: A Narrative Inquiry Among English Teachers in Bangladeshi Tertiary Education

Authors

Ibrahim Hossain University of Chittagong
Dr. Farzana Yesmen Chowdhury University of Chittagong

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.46870/lets.v5i2.857

Keywords:

Test construction practice, Influencing factors in test construction, Assessment literacy,, Narrative inquiry, Tertiary level English

Abstract

Assessment is a crucial component of the teaching and learning process within any educational setting. Teacher-constructed achievement tests are used as the only means of assessment in many educational contexts. Such tests can measure the attainment of educational objectives, facilitate effective instruction, and provide positive washback. This research employs a narrative inquiry approach to explore the test construction practices and to identify the influencing factors that shape these practices. It explores the lived experiences of a group of novice and experienced English language teachers at the tertiary level in Bangladesh. Individual stories are analysed using Brown and Abeywickrama’s (2010) five language assessment principles. The findings of this study reveal a substantial gap between the principles of test construction and the actual practices and reveal that practices are predominantly shaped by institutional regulations rather than teachers' grasp of assessment theory and techniques. The findings of the study have implications for teachers in constructing practical tests, teacher trainers in designing training modules, and policymakers in developing appropriate assessment policies.

References

Amin, A., & Greenwood, J. (2018). The examination system in Bangladesh and its impact: on curriculum, students, teachers and society. Language Testing in Asia, 8(1),1-18 https://doi.org/10.1186/s40468-018-0060-9

Alderson, J. C. (2010). A survey of aviation English tests. Language Testing, 27(1), 51-72.

Alderson, J. C., & Buck, G. (1993). Standards in testing: a study of the practice of UK examination boards in EFL/ESL testing. Language Testing, 10(1), 1-26.

Alderson, J. C., & Wall, D. (1993). Does washback exist? Applied Linguistics, 14(2), 115–129

Alderson, J.C., Clapham, C. & Wall, D. (1995). Language Test Construction and Evaluation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Anderson, L. W., Krathwohl, D. R., Airasian, P. W., Cruikshank, K. A., Mayer, R. E., & Pintrich, P. R. (2001). A revision of Bloom’s taxonomy of educational objectives. A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching and Assessing. Longman, New York.

Bachman, L. F. (2004). Statistical Analyses for Language Assessment Book. Cambridge University Press.

Bachman, L.F. & Palmer, A.S. (1996). Language Testing in Practice: Designing and Developing Useful Language Tests. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Bailey, K.M. & Brown, J.D. (1996). Language testing courses: What are they? In A. Cumming & R. Berwick (Eds.), Validation in language testing (pp. 236-256). Clevedon, UK: Multilingual Matters.

Black, P., & Wiliam, D. (1998). Assessment and classroom learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 5 (1), 7–74.

Bloom, B. S., Engelhart, M. D., Furst, E. J., Hill, W. H., & Krathwohl, D. R. (1956). Taxonomy of educational objectives: The classification of educational goals. Handbook 1: Cognitive domain (pp. 201-207). New York: McKay.

Brindley, G. (2001). Language assessment and professional development. Experimenting with Uncertainty: Essays in Honour of Alan Davies, 11, 137–143.

Brown, H.D. (2004). Language Assessment: Principles and Classroom Practices. New York: Pearson Education

Brown, H. D., & Abeywickrama, P. (2010). Language Assessment Principles and Classroom Practices (2nd ed.). White Plains, NY: Pearson Education.

Brown, J. D., & Bailey, K. (2008). Language testing courses: What are they in 2007? Language Testing, 25 (3), 349-383. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532208090157.

Brown, J. D. & Hudson, T. (2002). Criterion-referenced language testing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Chan., F. Y., & Sidhu, G. K. (2011). School-based assessment among ESL teachers in Malaysian secondary schools. Malaysian Education Deans' Council Journal, 9, 75-87.

Chowdhury, F. Y., & Hamid, M. O. (2016). Language, migration and social wellbeing: A narrative inquiry into the lives of low English proficiency Bangladeshi migrants in Australia. Australian Review of Applied Linguistics, 39(1), 8-30.

Coombs, A., DeLuca, C., LaPointe-McEwan, D., & Chalas, A. (2018). Changing approaches to classroom assessment: An empirical study across teacher career stages. Teaching and Teacher Education, 71, 134–144.

Coombe, C., Folse, K. & Hubley, N. (2007). A practical guide to assessing English language learners. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.

Das, S., Shaheen, R., Shrestha, P., Rahman, A., & Khan, R. (2014). Policy versus ground reality: Secondary English language assessment system in Bangladesh. Curriculum Journal, 25(3), 326-343.

Davies, A. (2008). Textbook trends in teaching language testing. Language Testing, 25(3), 327– 347 https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532208090156.

DeLuca, C., Valiquette, A., Coombs, A., LaPointe-McEwan, D., & Luhanga, U. (2018). Teachers’ approaches to classroom assessment: A large-scale survey. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 25(4), 355–375.

Fan, J., & Jin, Y. (2013). A survey of English language testing practice in China: The case of six examination boards. Language testing in Asia, 3(1), 1-16.

Fulcher, G. (2012). Assessment literacy for the language classroom. Language Assessment Quarterly, 9(2), 113–132 https://doi.org/10.1080/15434303.2011.642041.

Giraldo, F. (2018). Language assessment literacy: implications for language teachers. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 20(1), 179-195 https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v20n1. 62089

Hay, P., & Penney, D. (2013). Assessment in Physical Education: A Sociocultural Perspective. London: Routledge.

Hamid, M. O. (2011). Planning for failure: English and language policy and planning in Bangladesh. In J. A. Fishman & O. Garcia (Eds), Handbook of language and ethnic identity-the success-failure continuum in language and ethnic identity efforts (Vol. 2, 2nd ed., pp. 192–203). New York: Oxford University Press.

Hattie, J. (2008). Visible learning: a synthesis of over 800 meta-analyses relating to achievement. Routledge.

Hughes, A. (2003). Testing for language teachers. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Islam, S. M. A. (2015). Language policy and practice in secondary school contexts in Bangladesh; challenges to the Implementation of Language-in-Education Policy (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Aalborg: Aalborg University.

Inbar-Lourie, O. (2013). Guest editorial to the special issue on language assessment literacy. Language Testing, 30(3), 301–307 https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532213480126.

Inbar-Lourie, O. (2008). Constructing a language assessment knowledge base: a focus on language assessment courses.

Karim, H. B. B. A. (2004). A study of teachers’ perceptions of factors affecting curriculum change (unpublished doctoral dissertation). Penang: Universiti Sains Malaysia.

Khan, R. (2010). English language assessment in Bangladesh: Developments and challenges. In Y Moon, B Spolsky (Eds), Language assessment in Asia: Local, regional or global? (pp. 121-157). South Korea: Asia TEFL.

Kao, Y. T. (2023). Empowering preservice English teachers with language assessment literacy concepts and practices: Application of Vygotskian concept‐based language instruction. The Modern Language Journal, 107, 68-94.

Malone, M. (2008). Training in language assessment. In E. Shohamy & N. Hornberger (Eds.), Encyclopedia of language and education: language testing and assessment (2nd ed., Vol. 7, pp. 225–233). New York: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/ 978-0-387-30424-3_178.

Murray, M. (2003). Narrative psychology and narrative analysis. In P. Camic, J.E. Rhodes, & L. Yardley (Eds.), Qualitative research in psychology: expanding perspectives in methodology and design (pp. 95-112). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Doi: 10.1037/10595-006

McComas, W. F., & Abraham, L. (2004). Asking more effective questions. Rossier School of Education, 1-16.

O’Loughlin, K. (2006). Learning about second language assessment: Insights from a postgraduate student online subject forum. University of Sydney Papers in Tesol, 1, 71-85.

O’Loughlin, K. (2013). Developing the assessment literacy of university proficiency test users. Language Testing, 30(3), 363-380. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional. Development, 20(1), 179–195 https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v20n1.62089.

Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Rahman, A., & Khan, R. (2021). English language testing practices at the secondary level: A case study from Bangladesh. Challenges in language testing around the world: Insights for language test users, 447-464.

Rahman, S. (2015). English language policy initiatives and implementation in Bangladesh: Micro political issues. Asian EFL Journal, 88, 59-96. Language Testing, 25(3), 385–402. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532208090158.

Selim, A., & Mahboob, T. S. (2001). ELT and English language teachers of Bangladesh: a profile. In F. Alam, N. Zaman, & T. Ahmed (Eds.), Revisioning English in Bangladesh (pp. 141–151). Dhaka: The University Press Limited.

Singh, C. K. S., & Samad, A. A. (2013). Portfolio as an Assessment Tool and Its Implementation in Malaysian ESL Classrooms: A Study in Two Secondary Schools. Pertanika Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities, 21(4), 1255–1273.

Stiggins, R. (1997). Student-centred classroom assessment. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Sultana, N. Test review of the English public examination at the secondary level in Bangladesh. Lang Test Asia 8, 16 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40468-018-0068-1

Sultana, N. Language assessment literacy: an uncharted area for the English language teachers in Bangladesh. Lang Test Asia 9, 1 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40468-019-0077-8.

Taylor L. (2009). Developing assessment literacy. Annual Review of Applied Linguistics, 29, 21–36. https://doi.org/10.1017/S02671905090 90035

Tofade, T., Elsner, J., & Haines, S. T. (2013). Best practice strategies for effective use of questions as a teaching tool. American journal of pharmaceutical education, 77(7).

Willis, J., Adie, L., & Klenowski, V. (2013). Conceptualising teachers’ assessment literacies in an era of curriculum and assessment reform. The Australian Educational Researcher, 40(2),

–256. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-013-0089-9.

Xu, Y., & Liu, Y. (2009). Teacher assessment knowledge and practice: A narrative inquiry of a Chinese college EFL teacher's experience. T esol Quarterly, 43(3), 492-513.

Zulaiha, S., Mulyono, H., & Ambarsari, L. (2020). An Investigation into EFL Teachers' Assessment Literacy: Indonesian Teachers' Perceptions and Classroom Practice. European Journal of Contemporary Education, 9(1), 189-201.