An exploration into teacher’s perceptions and practices in designing english achievement tests at primary schools in thai nguyen city

Trang 1 THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DINH THI LIEN AN EXPLORATION INTO TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS AND PRACTICES IN DESIGNING ENGLISH ACHIEVEMENT TESTS Trang 2 THAI NGU

THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DINH THI LIEN AN EXPLORATION INTO TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS AND PRACTICES IN DESIGNING ENGLISH ACHIEVEMENT TESTS AT PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN THAI NGUYEN CITY M.A THESIS Field: English Linguistics Code: 8220201 THAI NGUYEN – 2022 THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DINH THI LIEN AN EXPLORATION INTO TEACHERS’ PERCEPTIONS AND PRACTICES IN DESIGNING ENGLISH ACHIEVEMENT TESTS AT PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN THAI NGUYEN CITY M.A THESIS (APPLICATION ORIENTATION) Field: English Linguistics Code: 8220201 Supervisor: Nong Thi Hien Huong, Ph.D THAI NGUYEN – 2022 THAI NGUYEN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES ĐINH THỊ LIÊN NGHIÊN CỨU NHẬN THỨC CỦA GIÁO VIÊN VÀ THỰC TIỄN THIẾT KẾ BÀI KIỂM TRA CUỐI KỲ MÔN TIẾNG ANH Ở CÁC TRƯỜNG TIỂU HỌC, THÀNH PHỐ THÁI NGUYÊN LUẬN VĂN THẠC SĨ (Định hướng ứng dụng) Ngành: Ngôn ngữ Anh Mã số: 8220201 Cán bộ hướng dẫn: TS Nông Thị Hiền Hương THÁI NGUYÊN – 2022 DECLARATION I hereby certify that the thesis entitled “An exploration into teacher’s perceptions and practices in designing English achievement tests at primary schools in Thai Nguyen city” is the study of my own research and the substance of this research has not been submitted for a degree to any other university or institution Approved by Author’s signature SUPERVISOR Nong Thi Hien Huong, Ph D Dinh Thi Lien Thai Nguyen, November 2022 i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express my special thanks to the ones whose help made this thesis possible I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my thesis supervisor, Nong Thi Hien Huong, Ph.D for her continuous feedbacks, invaluable guidance, and moral support throughout the study Thanks for all she shared with me; her knowledge on methodology, sociolinguistics, and life and for all the times she has put a smile on our faces with the surprises she made I would like to thank Dr Thang, Director of the School of Foreign Languages, who gave me permission to attend the MA English linguistics program I would also like to thank my colleagues for participating in this study, who enabled me to do this study I must express my love and sincere thanks to all my classmates for their support They made these years unforgettable for me My deepest gratitude to my family for their never-ending support and trust, which makes life easier ii ABSTRACT This research aims to explore English primary teachers’ perceptions and practices in designing English achievement tests; therefore, it examines the teachers’ actual test- working principles and practices This study also attempts to investigate and gain a thorough knowledge of other difficulties that arose as a result of the discrepancy between the teachers’ perceptions and their practices A survey of 18 teachers from primary schools in Thai Nguyen city was conducted A questionnaire with three main parts: teachers’ demographics, teachers’ perceptions and teachers’ practices in designing English achievement tests All responses were analyzed through descriptive statistics The results of this analysis revealed that most teachers had strong perceptions in designing English achievement tests and had a good understanding of testing principles They conducted their tests using appropriate procedures while keeping in mind the context of English teaching and learning in which they work However, there were a few difficulties that arose from their testing perceptions and practices It became clear that they did not put some of their concepts into practices; several important factors, which are normally beyond the control of the teachers, were found to be responsible for this, including overcrowded classrooms, heavy teaching loads, the education system’s central hierarchy, which controls primary education, and a lack of funding for foreign language teaching Teachers were also impacted by their complicated relationships with other teachers, administrators, and even students’ parents However, it is clear that teachers are always improving their testing abilities and knowledge to meet any obstacles or duties that may be assigned to them Furthermore, specific areas that require additional examination have been highlighted The possible implications and recommendations for raising awareness of this problematic practice and gaining a thorough knowledge of English achievement tests are presented based on the literature study and research findings Key words: English achievement test, language testing, content validity, teachers’perceptions and practices, primary schools iii TABLE CONTENTS DECLARATION i ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ii ABSTRACT iii TABLE CONTENTS iv LIST OF TABLES vi CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 The rationale of the study 1 1.2 Statement of the problem 3 1.3 Research sites 3 1.4 Objectives and research questions of the study 5 1.5 Scope of the study 6 1.6 Significance of the study 6 1.7 Organization of the study 6 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 8 2.1 Key concepts 8 2.1.1 Definition of language testing 8 2.1.2 Relationship of teaching, learning and testing 9 2.1.3 Validity 10 2.1.4 Types and purposes of tests 10 2.1.5 Achievement tests 12 2.1.6 Teacher-made test 14 2.1.7 Teachers’perceptions 15 2.1.8 Teachers’ practices 16 2.1.9 Attitudes toward testing 16 2.1.10 Theoretical framework 17 2.1.11 Previous studies 20 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY 22 3.1 Participants 22 3.2 Data collection instruments 22 3.2.1 Quantitative method 23 3.2.2 Qualitative method 25 3.3 Pilot study 26 iv 3.4 Procedures of data collection 28 3.5 Data Analysis 29 3.5.1 Data analysis tools 29 3.5.2 Procedure of analyzing the data 29 CHAPTER 4: RESULTS AND FINDINGS 30 4.1 Results on Questionnaire 30 4.1.2 Demographics of teachers 30 4.1.2.1 Teachers’ English teaching experience 30 4.1.2.2 Teaching English sub-skills 31 4.1.2.3 Kinds of test 31 4.1.2.4 Frequency of test use 32 4.1.2.5 Attendance the training course on language testing 32 4.1.2.6 Sources of test 33 4.1.3 Teachers’ perceptions in designing EAT 34 4.1.4 Teachers’ practices in designing EAT 39 4.1.5 The differences between teachers’ perceptions and practices in designing EAT 44 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION 52 5.1 Overall discussion 52 5.1.1 Research question 1: What are teachers’ perceptions in designing EAT? 52 5.1.2 Research question 2: What are teachers’ practices in designing EAT? 55 5.1.3 Research question 3: What are the differences between teachers’ perceptions and practices in designing EAT? 56 5.2 Implications of the study 59 5.2.1 Implications for research 59 5.2.2 Implications for test practice 60 5.3 Limitations of the study 61 5.4 Suggestions for further research 62 5.5 Concluding remark 62 REFERENCES 63 APPENDICES I v LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2.1: Socio-cognitive framework proposed by Weir (2005) 19 Figure 4.1 Teachers’ English teaching experience 30 Figure 4.2 Kinds of test 31 Figure 4 3 Frequency of test carried out by teachers 32 Figure 4 4 Attendance to the training course on language testing 33 Figure 4 5 Sources of test 33 LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1: Weightage distribution of four skills 4 Table 2.1: Test Purposes and Types 11 Table 3.1 Rules of alpha value 24 Table 3.2: Alpha values of the questionnaires 25 Table 4.1 The interpretation of the mean scores 34 Table 4.2:Teachers’ perceptions in the planning stage 35 Table 4.3: Teachers’ perceptions in the implementation stage 36 Table 4.4: Teachers’ perceptions in the monitoring stage 37 Table 4.6: Teachers’ practices in the planning stage 40 Table 4.7: Teachers’ practices in the implementation stage 41 Table 4.8: Teachers’ practices in the monitoring stage 42 Table 4.9: Teachers’ practices in the Recording and Dissemination stage 43 Table 4.10: The differences between teachers’ perceptions and practices 44 vi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS Abbreviation Meaning EAT English achievement test MOET Ministry of Education and Training vii