A Comparative Study of EFL Instructors’ Essay Rating: Holistic Versus Analytic Approaches at a Tertiary Institution in Saudi Arabia

This study seeks to explore the factors that influence EFL instructors’ rating decisions while using holistic and analytic rubrics. Few studies have been conducted on the factors that influence the rating practices of EFL instructors, specifically, in the Saudi EFL context. This study addresses this gap and contributes more broadly to the understanding of the interplay between EFL instructors and the use of holistic and analytic rubrics. The data were collected in a Saudi university at a preparatory year program (PYP). This study utilizes semi-structured interviews with eleven EFL instructors from different nationalities. Guided by the critical language testing as a theoretical framework and with qualitative analysis, the study reveals that critical language testing can minimize the negative consequences of writing assessment done by graders; however, students’ low English proficiency, time constraints, heavy workload can negatively affect the rating practices. Finally, several pedagogical implications, insights, and recommendations for future research are put forward in the conclusion.

Critical Language Testing: Factors Influencing Students’ Decisions to (Not) Pursue the Seal of Biliteracy

In this investigation, Kristin J. Davin analyzes current and former emergent bilingual learners’ decisions to take or not take a language proficiency assessment in a home language to pursue a Seal of Biliteracy (SoBL). The SoBL is a policy adopted in forty states to counteract English-only ideologies by recognizing students who graduate high school bilingual and biliterate. Considering the power of assessments and the complexity of the decision to take a test of proficiency in one’s home language, this study uses the history-in-person framework to understand the factors that shape students’ decisions to take, or not take, the “seals test.” Davin’s findings point toward considerations and changes necessary to SoBL implementation to ensure that the policy meets the needs of the emergent bilingual learners it was intended to benefit.