Formative use of midterm assessments in Mozambique

MUIANGA, Felizardo Armando. Formative use of midterm assessments in Mozambique. In 9. International Conference on PhD Research in Language Teaching Methodology, Linguistics, and Literary Studies. 2023.

Basic information

• Original name: Formative use of midterm assessments in Mozambique
• Authors: MUIANGA, Felizardo Armando.
• Edition: 9. International Conference on PhD Research in Language Teaching Methodology, Linguistics, and Literary Studies, 2023.

Other information

• Original language: English
• Type of outcome: Presentations at conferences
• Country of publisher: Slovakia
• Confidentiality degree: is not subject to a state or trade secret
• Keywords in English: teacher assessment, formative assessment, assessment policy, midterm assessments, Mozambique.
• Tags: International impact

Abstract

Implementing formative assessment in high-stakes assessment contexts is challenging due to teaching to the test. Formative use of tests has been viewed as an alternative to implementing formative assessment in such assessment contexts. This small-scale qualitative study examined 12 secondary school English language teachers’ formative use of midterm assessments. It concentrated on the teachers’ feedback, strategies teachers employ to address students’ difficulties and misunderstandings, and factors influencing teachers’ formative use of midterm assessments. The data were collected through in-depth interviews and video recordings in Maputo, Mozambique. The results suggest that most participants’ feedback on midterm assessments tends to be summative. The teachers emphasise the knowledge about the correctness of assessment responses rather than using the assessment information to advance learning. In addition, to address students’ misunderstandings and difficulties, most participants rely mainly on re-explaining assessment questions and concepts to students. Factors such as education and training, cultural norm, and working conditions were identified as influencing teachers’ formative use of midterm assessments. The findings are relevant to Mozambique and assessment contexts where formative assessment has not been fully integrated into the summative assessment framework.