“I wonder who I am when my assessment ideas are not respected”: a case-study inquiry into the role of institutional policies in English language teachers’ assessment identity

ABSTRACT

Although assessment is a significant part of teachers’ professional careers, there are few documented studies on language teachers’ assessment identity. This study drew on a case-study design and examined the role of the institutional context in Iranian English language teachers’ assessment identity. Data were collected from semi-structured interviews, classroom observations, and stimulated recall interviews. Data analyses indicated that local top-down policies highly constrained the teachers’ assessment identities, assessment emotions, and assessment agencies. These policies pressured the teachers to develop an assessment adaptability system, experience little professional support, and face tensions in constructing their identities as assessors. The findings are discussed in light of contextual exigencies that complicate developing an effective assessor identity in contexts where top-down educational policies substantially and constantly sanction teachers’ professional career pathways. Based on the findings, we provide implications for policymakers and teacher educators to help teachers develop identities that feature investment in positively contributing to educational accountability.

KEYWORDS:

• Language assessment
• teacher identity
• curricular restrictions
• assessment policies
• English teachers

Acknowledgment

The authors are grateful to the insightful comments suggested by the editor and the anonymous reviewers.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Authors’ contribution

All authors have materially participated in the research and article preparation. Additionally, all authors have approved the final article.

Data availability statement

The datasets generated and analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ali Derakhshan

Ali Derakhshan is Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics at the English Language and Literature Department, Golestan University, Gorgan, Iran. He has been a member of the Iranian Elites Foundation since 2015. He has also been selected as a distinguished researcher by the Teaching English Language and Literature Society of Iran in 2021. His name appeared in Stanford University’s list of world’s top 2% of most influential scientists in 2022 and 2023. He has published in accredited international journals, including Computers and Education, Language Teaching Research, System, Assessing Writing, Applied Linguistics Review, Studies in Second Language Learning and Teaching, Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, ELT Journal, International Review of Applied Linguistics in Language Teaching, International Journal of Applied Linguistics, Thinking Skills and Creativity, European Journal of Education, Current Psychology, Asia Pacific Education Researcher, Educational Studies, Pragmatics and Society, Journal of Psycholinguistic Research, Porta Linguarum, Revista Ibérica, etc. His monograph The “5Cs” positive teacher interpersonal behaviors: Implications for learner empowerment and learning in an L2 context was published by Springer in 2022. His co-authored book Instructed second language pragmatics for the speech acts of request, apology, and refusal: A meta-analysis has been recently published by Springer. His research interests are positive psychology, teacher education, learner individual differences, cross-cultural interpersonal factors in educational psychology, interlanguage pragmatics, and intercultural communication.

Khazar Molana

Khazar Molana is a graduate student of TEFL from Islamic Azad University Science and Research Branch, Tehran, Iran. Her areas of interest are teacher education and technology in language learning, and her papers have appeared in TESOL Quarterly, System, Journal of Asia TEFL, etc.

Mostafa Nazari

Mostafa Nazari is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Department of English and Communication, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. His area of interest is second language teacher education and his publications have appeared in TESOL Quarterly, European Journal of Teacher Education, Teaching and Teacher Education, etc.