Teachers' perspectives and practices in assessing young foreign language learners in three Eastern European countries

Abstract

The purpose of the present study is to investigate foreign language teachers' experiences, understanding, attitudes and expertise in regard to the assessment of foreign languages at the primary level in three Eastern European countries (the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Croatia). The central part of the paper focuses on the current assessment research practices in young learner language education and shows different attempts to introduce assessment in primary school situations, and provides some perspective to the classroom-based assessment. It also introduces the recent practice of foreign language assessment in primary situations in three Eastern European countries. The research shows that the majority of teachers had received no additional teacher training in assessing pupils' foreign language development and they express a great desire for additional teacher training in assessing young learners. In all three countries the traditional belief prevails that teachers are the most responsible for assessment. The majority of teachers in all three countries approve of assessing young learners, and they prefer descriptive rather than numerical assessment methods. However, there are significant differences in practice among the three countries.

Keywords:

• assessment
• young language learners
• teachers' opinions and practices

Notes

1. See documents from the Commission of the European Communities: Promoting Language Learning and Linguistic Diversity: An Action Plan 2004–2006 (2003) which expresses its intent to extend, consolidate and develop the early learning of one or more foreign or additional languages in each of the EU member states; Communication (number 596) (Commission of the European Communities 2005a), from November 2005 dealing with multilingualism, to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions (this official document identifies early foreign language learning as an important area of action); Progress towards the Lisbon Objectives in Education and Training (March 2005) (Commission of the European Communities 2005b), which includes a chapter devoted to foreign language teaching.