Students’ Output in the Distance Learning in Relation to the Teachers’ Subjectivity in the Times of Pandemic: A Descriptive Study

The CoViD-19 pandemic has brought change to everything including the landscape of education. It has changed the way how the teachers teach, and the students learn. Due to the different challenges bought by this phenomenon, consideration atop of everything is done including assessment. This study aims to determine the subjectivity of the teachers in assessment in the new normal. This determines whether the challenges in the new normal specifically the channels and forms of assessment influences the teachers’ subjectivity in assessing the students. To achieve this, the study determined the demographic profile, assessment practice, perception on the output of the students in the new normal and their standards in assessment. Mixed method research design was used in the study. It was found that there is relationship between the educational attainment and the teachers’ preference on what to be checked more carefully – hardcopy or softcopy. The teachers’ designation shows that it has a relationship regarding the view on whether to set a maximum and minimum grade limit in assessing the students. Moreover, there is a correlation between the teachers’ perception and their standards in assessment. This study suggests that what the teachers perceive has something to do with their assessment standard. Thus, if they perceive to be more subjective (which the respondents agree as a result of this study) in these times of pandemic, they will be subjective in standardizing their assessment.

Equitable Assessment Practices

The traditional approach to assessment is being reevaluated as a valid and effective language learning assessment tool because it often fails to account for the specific needs, contexts, and backgrounds of language learners. To make assessment processes more equitable, just, and inclusive, this chapter extends the traditional approach to assessment practice by introducing the equity-minded assessment model, which includes six principles for teachers to use as a framework for creating and evaluating assessments: validity, reliability, practicality, authenticity, washback and equity, and justice and inclusion. The author suggests that the model be used to design, administer, and reflect on the effectiveness of the assessment and as a critical reflective framework and not merely as a checklist of items. Thus, this model can serve to make assessments for learning and not just of learning, thereby making the assessment process equitable and inclusive.

Impacted Whether They Know It or Not

In the past 20 years, schools have been increasingly exposed to school shootings in which many of the victims are targeted at random. Despite recent progress in coping with school crises such as suicide, accidental death, and targeted violence, the advent of random-type school shootings has left mental health, education, law enforcement, and other professionals struggling to deal with this type of traumatic event in terms of its aftermath and its prevention. In this chapter, a systems-oriented approach—rather than an individually-focused approach to traumatic events—the Traumatic Event Systems (TES) model, is proposed to increase the understanding and the effectiveness of professionals in responding to the aftermath of school shootings. The companion model, the Violence Threat Risk Assessment (VTRA), is proposed with a trauma-informed threat assessment practice that creates a nexus between prior trauma and future violence potential through an understanding of the “trauma-violence continuum.”

Assessment processes and principles related to Food Security that Zimbabwe can rely on for insight.

Increasing frequency and intensity of food insecurity in Zimbabwe, amidst heavy investment in Disaster Risk Reduction efforts threaten the achievement of the Zero Hunger target by 2030. The need to interrogate assessment practice need not be overemphasized. An interpretive–constructivist paradigm guided this study, while desktop review, focus group discussions and individual interviews were the main data collection tools. A purposively selected sample, of 85participants from Bulilima, Gwanda, Mangwe, and Umzingwane districts was used. These districts share similar social and cultural characteristics and hazards. The sample consisted of District development coordinators (DDCs), Environmental Management Agency, Rural District Council (RDC) chief executive officers, councillors, traditional leaders (chiefs), NGO managers, and heads of schools, deemed to bring depth into the study. NVivo software was used in data analysis to establish order, structure, and meaning, to ensure coherence, consistency, and quality of research findings and deductions. The study found that the term, “assessment” was variedly understood across disciplines and levels of responsibility, due to the existence of parallel assessment regimes that fragment and weaken assessment practice. Hence, the need to make capacity-building, training and education and stakeholder participation a permanent feature in Zimbabwe. This will promote correct understanding and application of the terms, and increase the knowledge of DRR practice. Assessment practice challenges emanate from the manner in which stakeholders do assessments. Hence, the need for attitude change and commitment to the pooling of all the resources towards the assessment practice, and adherence to standards and principles that govern assessment.

Policy in Practice: Teachers’ Conceptualizations of L2 English Oral Proficiency as Operationalized in High-Stakes Test Assessment

Assessment of foreign/second language (L2) oral proficiency is known to be complex and influenced by the local context. In Sweden, extensive assessment guidelines for the National English Speaking Test (NEST) are offered to teachers, who act as raters of their own students’ performances on this high-stakes L2 English oral proficiency (OP) test. Despite guidelines, teachers commonly construct their own NEST scoring rubric. The present study aims to unveil teachers-as-raters’ conceptualizations, as these emerge from the self-made scoring rubrics, and possible transformations of policy. Data consist of 20 teacher-generated scoring rubrics used for assessing NEST (years 6 and 9). Rubrics were collected via personal networks and online teacher membership groups. Employing content analysis, data were analysed qualitatively to examine (i) what OP sub-skills were in focus for assessment, (ii) how sub-skills were conceptualized, and (iii) scoring rubric design. Results showed that the content and design of rubrics were heavily influenced by the official assessment guidelines, which led to broad consensus about what to assess—but not about how to assess. Lack of consensus was particularly salient for interactive skills. Analysis of policy transformations revealed that teachers’ self-made templates, in fact, lead to an analytic rather than a holistic assessment practice.

Teachers’ response to a challenge to change: A portrait of teacher resilience to a professional development program

Teachers’ learning in keeping abreast of groundbreaking instructional techniques is crucial for their continuous development of which the ultimate goal is meaningful learning for students. However, research on the extent teachers respond to the demand to change especially on their assessment practice is limited. This study investigated teachers’ resilience on a new educational innovation on formative assessment which is group oriented. The study engaged a cohort of 100 high school teachers joining a professionalism-related seminar and workshop for the expected change. The data were collected from a set of individual questionnaire. Mowbray’s insight on process of reacting to events was employed to analyse the data projected to describe the teachers’ resilience on an innovative assessment practice. The findings indicated teachers revealed resilience to a certain extent on the innovative assessment practice. The majority were open to the challenge to change; it is the novice teachers who revealed the greatest resilience.

Students’ Perceptions of Involvement in the Assessment of Oral Competence in English as a Second Language

This mixed-method study examined students’ perceptions of involvement in the assessment practice of oral competence in English in Norwegian upper secondary schools. Student involvement in assessment can be seen as a key factor when it comes to enhancing students’ learning outcome and motivation. Previous research has, however, shown that student involvement and the assessment of oral competence in English as a second language classes have been challenging. Surveys (N = 116) and two focus group interviews (N = 8) were used. The findings revealed that the students wanted to be more involved in the assessment practice. Moreover, the students saw this increased involvement as a way to enhance their oral competence in English. The students expressed uncertainty as to what they were assessed by. The implications of this study suggest that increased involvement in developing goals and criteria and more dialogue-based feedback are beneficial measures for strengthening students’ learning outcomes.

Fostering learners’ involvement in the assessment process during the COVID-19 pandemic: Perspectives of university language and communication teachers across the globe

With the transition to online teaching due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for identifying effective methods of assessment has become paramount. The methods of traditional summative in-person, paperand-pencil exams could not be adapted to the online environment. In case of unsupervised (nonproctored) exams it was impossible to ensure students’ academic honesty. Some universities have offered remotely supervised (proctored) examinations, which has been a rare exception. The pandemic prompted teachers to innovate their assessment practice and apply formative assessment methods as an alternative to traditional summative assessment. They have started using tasks such as e-portfolios, online learning journals, blogs, online presentations, creative writing, and open-book exams, which present golden opportunities to involve students in the assessment process. This study aims to explore assessment-related experiences of language and communication teachers at higher education institutions (HEIs) during the pandemic. Our mixed-method research combines an international survey administered to university language and communication teachers (N=301) with in-depth interviews with a selection of participants (n=18) of the same background. The results provide valuable insights into the perceptions that university language and communication teachers have of effective assessment methods and pedagogical approaches engaging learners in assessment. The implications of the study advocate a growing trend toward a wider use of learner-centered assessment.