The Washback of Midterm Examination on First-Year Students’ Perception Regarding the Final Exam

Authors

  • Kanar Zirak Haseeb Chicho Department of English Language Teaching, Faculty of Education, Tishk International University Erbil, Iraq
  • Soma Hassan Hussein Department of English Language Teaching, Faculty of Education, Tishk International University Erbil, Iraq

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.23918/ijsses.v9i2p267

Keywords:

Washback, Exams, EFL learners, Assessments, Positive Washback

Abstract

The examinations are an essential part of the education system. Therefore, the importance of examinations cannot be dismissed. However, assessments and evaluations affect the program of the study, students, and teachers. These effects cause different types of washback which has been defined as the impact of testing and evaluation on both students and teachers. The negative washback from the examination makes the students study to pass the exams rather than learn the class objectives. On the other hand, positive washback motivates the students to work harder and learn. This study investigates the washback of midterm exams on students’ perception regarding the final exam. A mixed method has been used for conducting this research project. A survey and an interview have been implemented for the data collection. The data have been collected from 108 first-year students in the Departments of English Language Teaching (ELT), Biology Education, Computer Education, Physics Education, and Mathematics Education department in Tishk International University Erbil, Kurdistan. In brief, the examinations determine the type of washback that the students have after exams, either positive or negative. The results showed a positive washback.

References

Airasian, P.W., Kelleghan, T., Madaus G. F. (2011). The Power and Impact of Standardized Tests. Kluwer. Nijhoff.

Barzani, S.H.H., Barzani, I.H.A., & Meena, R.S. (2022). Investigating Kurdish EFL students’ attitudes towards the use of authentic materials in learning English. Canadian Journal of Language and Literature Studies, 2(1), 1-13.

Cheng, L. (2005). Changing language teaching through language testing: A washback study (Vol. 21). Cambridge university press.

Cheng, L., Watanabe, Y., & Curtis, A. (Eds.). (2004). Washback in language testing: Research contexts and methods. Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

Chicho, K. Z. H. (2022). An analysis of factors influencing EFL learners’ writing skills. Canadian Journal of Language and Literature Studies, 2(2), 28-38.

Davis, F. D. (1985). A technology acceptance model for empirically testing new end-user information systems: Theory and results (Doctoral dissertation, Massachusetts Institute of Technology).

Driscoll, D. L. (2011). Introduction to primary research: Observations, surveys, and interviews. Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing, 2(2011), 153-174.

Hamp-Lyons, L. 1997. ‘Washback, impact, and validity: ethical concerns. Language Testing 14/3: 295–303.

Hughes, John. (1989) “Why functional programming matters. The Computer Journal, 32 (2) 98-107.

Hussein, S., Meena, R. S., & Ali, H. F. (2021). Integration of literature in English language teaching: learners’ attitudes and opinions. Canadian Journal of Language and Literature Studies, 1(1), 27-43.

Messick, S. (1996). Validity and washback in language testing. Language Testing, 13(3), 241-256.56.

O’Cathain, A., Murphy, E. & Nicholl, J. (2007). Why, and how mixed methods research is undertaken in health services research in England: a mixed-methods study. BMC Health Serv Res, 7, 85.

Ryan, K. E., Ryan, A. M., Arbuthnot, K., & Samuels, M. (2007). Students’ motivation for standardized math exams. Educational Researcher, 36(1), 5-13.

Sadiq, D. A., & Hakeem, S. N. (2020). Gender Differences in the Speech Events of Kurdistan Parliament. Journal of University of Raparin, 7(1), 80-94.

Salmons, J. (2009). Online interviews in real-time. Sage.

Zirak Haseeb Chicho, K. (2021). Embodied learning implementation in EFL classroom: A qualitative study. International Journal of Social Sciences & Educational Studies, 8(1), 51-58.

Downloads

Published

22.06.2022

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Chicho, K. Z. H., & Hussein, S. H. (2022). The Washback of Midterm Examination on First-Year Students’ Perception Regarding the Final Exam. International Journal of Social Sciences & Educational Studies, 9(2), 267-277. https://doi.org/10.23918/ijsses.v9i2p267

Similar Articles

1-10 of 242

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.