Teachers’ understanding of classroom assessment: Insights from English language teachers in Dodoma municipality, Tanzania

Abstract

This paper reports on the findings of a baseline study focusing on teachers’ understanding of classroom assessment, their assessment practices, and implications for professional development. Specifically, the study explored English language teachers’ perceptions of classroom assessment practices, the student’s expectations of assessment feedback, the perceived usefulness, and suggestions for improving classroom assessment. The study employed a qualitative research approach with Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) as the primary data collection method. Data were collected from 30 English language teachers in Dodoma Urban District and analyzed using thematic analysis. Study findings indicate that observing student behavior, providing opportunities for individual and group assignments, presentation, questioning, and obtaining feedback orally and in writing were the major assessment procedures practiced by teachers. Most respondents opined about students expecting improved learning, reinforcement, and good grades. The study has identified the knowledge and skills gap of respondents, which is the essence of Assessment for Learning (AfL), namely teachers’ ability to diagnose learning difficulties for group and individual learners so as to provide the necessary support. Moreover, respondents acknowledged the importance of classroom assessment feedback for evaluating pedagogy, detecting students’ understanding, and improving learning. These findings suggest the need for intervention based on a collaborative design and implementation of the designed supporting instructional materials.

Keywords:

• Assessment for Learning
• Focus Group Discussion
• Professional Development

REVIEWING EDITOR:

• Sammy King Fai Hui, Curriculum & Instruction, The Education University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong

SUBJECTS:

• Assessment & Testing
• Teachers & Teacher Education
• Curriculum Studies

Introduction

English language teaching and learning in Tanzania presents theoretical and practical challenges and contradictions. According to the 2014 Education and Training Policy (URT, 2023 Edition) both Kiswahili and English are the proclaimed official languages and languages of instruction. English is used as a language of instruction right from pre-school in all schools categorized as English Medium schools, Colleges and universities, while Kiswahili is a language of instruction in all other pre and primary schools. However, due to overwhelming role of Kiswahili as a language of communication outside the classroom, English language proficiency among classroom teachers and students is low (Qorro et al., 2023).

Researchers have pointed out that this situation has affected the quality of education throughout the education system from primary through to university levels. Teachers fail to explain discipline specific concepts to students, while students cannot communicate their ideas in English language. On the one hand, language theory (Cummins, 1981) suggests that school children ought to learn their mother tongue first before learning a new or foreign language. On the other hand, the government has not adopted that approach allegedly because some policy makers, who are said to be influenced by cultural imperialism, harbour vested interests (Qorro et al., 2023). Two among many recommendations to improve the situation are: first, the need to create an environment where the role of local languages, including Kiswahili, is prioritized vis a vis English; secondly, improving language English language skills through the integrated content and language learning approach (Kilangi, 2023). The current intervention research relates to the second recommendation. Thus, the review of concepts such as Assessment for Learning (AfL), Assessment as Learning (AaL), and Assessment of Learning (AoL), and teacher’s understanding and practice of the same are in line with the integrated content language learning approach (Kilangi, 2023).

This article, a result of a baseline study, focuses on teachers’ understanding of classroom assessment, assessment practices, and implications for professional development. Several reasons account for this research’s conduct: the country’s education and development policy, the need to improve learning and embrace new thinking in educational practice, and the need to understand current school classroom assessment practices. As noted earlier, the study from which the findings are reported was triggered by the fact that the 2014 Education and Training Policy (2024 Edition), National curriculum framework (2019), and the country’s development vision 2025 to become a middle-income industrial economy. Competent teachers need to be developed who will prepare requisite human resource capacity. In this regard, classroom assessment is part and parcel of preparing Tanzania’s present and future workforce. Additionally, considering that the concept of Assessment in the literature is very broad, it was not immediately clear how secondary school teachers understood Assessment and how their understanding would affect their assessment practice. For that reason, the baseline research was conducted as an intervention towards improving classroom practice. Thus, the report begins with a brief background about the concept of Assessment in its various forms. It proceeds to describe the methodology used to conduct the study, followed by data analysis, interpretation, and discussion of the findings.

Recently, there has been a growing interest in classroom assessment. Consensus among educational policymakers, researchers, and practitioners is that Assessment is a vitally important aspect of the teaching-learning process (Kyaruzi et al., 2019; Lebar & Mohamed, 2017; Pellegrino, 2014). Assessment allows educators and other professionals to make relevant educational decisions focused on enhanced student learning outcomes and school improvement (Black & William, 2004; Taylor, 2003). Information emanating from assessment procedures provides a sound foundation for appropriate classroom practices, which promotes students’ learning (Chappuis & Chappuis, 2008; Howell & Nolet, 2000; Hussein, 2017). This explains the remarkable shift in the focus of attention where Assessment and students’ learning are now viewed as inseparable, and Assessment is perceived as a tool for supporting students’ learning (Black & William, 2018; Shepard et al., 2018; Siarova et al., 2017; Stiggins, 2008; Sun et al., 2012; Timperley, 2009). In this context, educational systems have moved from a more traditional testing culture, where instruction and assessment were perceived as independent from each other, towards an assessment culture whereby Assessment is conducted both formally and informally through monitoring and scaffolding aligned with classroom instruction to enhance student’s learning (Azim & Khan, 2012; Brown, 2017; Ndoye, 2017). Indeed, this change in the assessment paradigm is driven by the need to develop students’ competencies appropriate for the 21^st century (Lai &Viering, 2012). Given that Assessment plays a very crucial role in informing and supporting student learning, Assessment for Learning (AfL) has been advocated and highly emphasized in contrast to Assessment of Learning (AoL) and Assessment as Learning (AaL). These three purposes of Assessment have different meanings and implications in classroom settings. The focus of this paper is basically on AfL.

AfL is defined as a process by which assessment feedback is used by teachers to adjust their teaching strategies as well as by students to change their learning techniques (Manitoba Education & Citizenship &Youth, 2006; UCLES, 2017). As inferred from the above, AfL, is used as feedback to fix weaknesses in the learning process, find learning difficulties, and help students learn better. Thus, AfL is used as an investigative tool to find out what students know, what they can do, and what confusions, preconceptions, or gaps they might have for attaining the required learning outcomes (DeLuca, Luu, Sun & Klinger, 2012; Gibs, 2010; Meijerman et al., 2017; Ndalichako, 2015). Similarly, the results of AfL can help teachers identify areas that seem problematic and confusing for students. Eventually, such information will allow teachers to adapt and improve their teaching.

On the other hand, AaL focuses on students and emphasizes Assessment as a process of meta-cognition (knowledge of one’s thought process) for students (Yamtim & Wongwanich, 2013). In this view, students are critical assessors of their learning by making sense of information, relating it to their prior knowledge, and using it for new learning (Oz, 2014; Polland et al., 2004). Assessments of Learning (AoL) are strategies usually designed at the end of the unit to confirm whether or not students have met the curriculum outcomes or the goals of their individualized programme (Briton, 2015; Hopfenbeck, 2018). This approach aims to provide evidence of achievement to students, parents, educators, and outside groups such as employers and other educational institutions (Balan, 2012).

However, AfL is currently touted as the most promising pedagogical approach for enhancing students’ learning in various countries. In the United States of America (USA), following the introduction of the No Child Left Behind policy, it was felt essential to change teachers’ beliefs and practices on classroom assessment to realize the target of the policy (Brink, 2017). Thus, teachers had to move from viewing Assessment as an end to Assessment as a means to an end; hence Assessment for learning was seen as necessary (Moss, 2013). The government of Singapore 2004 introduced Teach Less, Learn More (TLLM) policy which emphasized that the goal of education in Singapore was to prepare students for the test of life rather than a life of test (Lam, 2018). Therefore, to realize the goal of that policy, teachers were asked to change from focusing more on AoL to AfL. In Namibia, Educational systems have moved from paying much attention to AoL to AfL, mainly in the form of continuous Assessment (C.A.) as a powerful lever in realizing the objectives of learner-centered pedagogy in the country (Nyambe, 2015). One of the expected functions of C.A. was to provide feedback to the learners and teachers on how they performed and what was required to improve their teaching practices, thus enhancing students’ learning.

Tanzania, just like other countries, perceives Assessment as a critical tool and an integral part of shaping effective teaching and learning. For example, with the introduction of Education for Self Reliance in 1968, Tanzania was the first country in the Southern African Development Community (SADEC) to introduce C.A., particularly at the ordinary and secondary levels of its educational system (Ahmad et al., 2014). Despite the hopes of C.A. to improve teaching and learning, available studies in Tanzania (Byabato & Kisamo, 2015; Ndalichako, 2015, Salema, 2017) suggest that C.A. has had little influence on teaching and learning. In fact, the traditional assessment mode was criticized due to its summative nature and for constantly assuming that Assessment was an endpoint of study and separate from teaching and learning. Thus, CA, also known as formative Assessment, was introduced as an alternative approach to Assessment to support students’ learning and performance by giving feedback to learners (TIE, 2013).

According to Wiliam and Thompson (2017), the integrated approach to Assessment for Learning (AfL) places a high premium on the ongoing support and improvement of student learning throughout the teaching process. Fundamentally, Assessment for Learning (AfL) stresses the use of formative assessment procedures, which happen in real-time during instruction to give teachers and students continuous feedback. This timely, targeted, and useful feedback aims to pinpoint students’ areas of strength and growth. Furthermore, by utilizing techniques like peer and self-assessment, AfL promotes students’ active participation in the assessment process. While self-assessment helps students develop self-regulation and metacognitive abilities as they consider their own learning progress, peer assessment helps students collaborate and communicate by having them evaluate each other’s work based on preset criteria.

Additionally, AfL can be effectively facilitated by teachers using good questioning strategies, which allow them to check students’ understanding, identify misconceptions, and stimulate critical thinking through discussion (Chen & Bonner, 2020). Transparent expectations for learning tasks are given to students through clear assessment criteria and rubrics, which help them succeed and enable teachers to provide regular, helpful feedback. By working in concert, these interrelated tactics establish a nurturing educational setting where evaluation easily informs instruction, enabling students to take charge of their education and make significant progress in their academic careers.

Referring to study conducted by Davison (2019), for Assessment for Learning (AfL) to be successfully integrated into the English curriculum, a supportive learning environment must be established. First, it is critical to cultivate a climate of trust and cooperation between instructors and students. Teachers should promote candid communication and active participation, and students should feel at ease offering and receiving feedback. Transparency and accountability are also encouraged when learning objectives and evaluation criteria are made plain to students so they know what is expected of them and how their progress will be assessed. Further, Hodgen and Marshall (2005) contended that, using a variety of assessment techniques, including formative assessments, peer assessments, and self-assessments, gives students the opportunity to interact with the content in new ways and get feedback from a variety of sources, which improves their understanding of English topics.

Additionally, Wu et al. (2021) discovered that, by including assessment opportunities early in the learning process rather than just at the conclusion of units or courses, students can develop continuously because timely and useful feedback is provided. By offering more opportunities for assessment and feedback, technology may be used to further improve the integration of AfL in the English classroom. Examples of this include digital portfolios for self-assessment and online forums for peer review (Wang, 2014). Furthermore, encouraging students to adopt a growth mindset in which errors are seen as chances for growth and learning allows them to be resilient and persistent in their English language development. Teachers can successfully integrate AfL into the English curriculum and encourage student involvement, motivation, and achievement by creating a supportive learning environment.

Various empirical studies aimed at exploring the characteristics and potential of exemplary materials have proved that exemplary curriculum materials exert positive effects on teachers’ pedagogical efforts, particularly in implementing a new innovation (Gakii, 2015; Karaduma & Gultekin, 2007; Motswiri, 2004; Nguru, 2018; William, 2012). Further, their studies indicated that the lack of teachers’ in-depth capacity for Assessment and the lack of exemplary instructional materials to support teachers compound the problem. Given this situation and the National Curriculum Framework of 2019 (MOEST, 2019), it was felt desirable for teachers to be supported with authentic Exemplary Instructional Materials (EIMs) followed by a series of workshops to enhance teachers’ professional ability to carry out Assessment in ways that enhance teaching and learning. Inspired by the cited experiences, the present researchers felt essential to develop and try out curriculum materials to improve English language teachers’ capacity to carry out Assessments for learning in secondary schools.

Therefore, carrying out this study was envisaged to contribute to implementing the National Curriculum Framework (NCF). The NCF aims to guide the preparation of appropriate curricula for 21 ^st century competent human resources necessary for becoming a middle-income industrial economy in the shortest time possible (MOEST, 2019). Talented human resources cannot be developed unless classroom teachers are empowered to conduct assessment regimes aligned with the desired learning outcomes and skills. These skills include learning and literacy skills such as creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration, to mention a few.

However, considering that the thinking and practice of AfL are new to Tanzanian teachers, a preliminary study was conducted around schools in Dodoma city, mainly for English language teachers. The purpose of the initial study was to understand the problem in its broader sense to establish the need for an intervention. Specifically, the study sought to achieve the following objectives – to analyze English language teachers’ perceptions of classroom assessment practices, to analyze English language teachers’ perceptions of the students’ expectations of assessment feedback, and to find out how English language teachers perceive the usefulness of the assessment feedback, to assess English language teachers’ suggestive framework for improving classroom assessment.

Methodology

Research ethics, design, approach, and data collection procedures

Before going to the details of the methodology, a note about research ethics is in order. A research permit was sought from the Vice-Chancellor University of Dodoma, which introduced the researchers to the district research sites and heads of selected secondary schools. The teachers sought informed consent, including permission to use digital voice recorders during the FGDs. Research participants were assured that anonymity would be strictly observed in transcribing the FGD data.

As intimated earlier, the present study is a preliminary investigation of teachers’ understanding and assessment practices and their implications for professional development. The study employed a phenomenological design entrenched within a qualitative research approach by using Focus Group Discussions as the data collection method. Phenomenography holds the fundamental premise that there is no right or wrong conception in the investigated phenomena. The researcher is interested in reality; only conceptions of phenomena are of interest (Gibbings, 2008). According to Gibbings, the phenomenographic process involves uncovering all the possible experiences a group of people have of a particular phenomenon. In this vein, phenomenography is suitable for research on the perspectives of individuals and their understanding of the social world (Padilla-Díaz, 2015; Ritchie & Lwis, 2003). This study’s choice of phenomenography design was motivated by the study’s intention to be acquainted with Teachers’ Understanding of Classroom Assessments and their experiences in classroom practices.

Several justifications motivated the choice of FGDs in this study. Firstly, the choice of the FGDs was made based on the view that interaction among participants might stimulate each individual to state their feelings and perceptions (Okwaput, 2013). Secondly, FGDs was used to facilitate gathering of detailed and diverse perspectives on the topic understudy hence thereby collection of rich data in efficient manner. On this domain, it was assumed that through FGDs, the participants could build on each other’s responses, leading to deeper insights and a more comprehensive understanding of the issue under investigation. Additionally, FGDs was used in view of enhancing the credibility of the findings, as participants could clarify and expand on their responses in real-time.

The use of FGDs in this study followed various systematic procedures. Firstly, English language teachers with varying levels of experience were recruited. About five FGDs were involved each being composed of six participants from a total of 30 English language teachers. Secondly, the study involved development of flexible FGDs guide whereby different topics discussed during the FGD were outlined. Thirdly, actual conduct of the FGDs was made; the purpose of the discussion was introduced, and ground rules were established in order to ensure focused and democratic participation in the discussion. Likewise, data collection was undertaken through detailed notes on key points and observations. Each FGD was held for forty-five minutes so that the participants become productive.

Moreover, all discussions were held in Kiswahili and later transcribed into English. In line with Nyumba et al. (2018) ideas about purpose of FGD, English language teachers were purposely selected to participate in the FGD so as to gain an in-depth understanding of their experiences in classroom assessment.

Study participants and selection logistics

The study was conducted in the Dodoma Urban district, specifically chosen due to its proximity to the researchers’ workstation. It was assumed that the research team would easily visit the teachers in their respective schools for further follow-up during the intervention phase. The public secondary schools were purposively involved in this study. The criterion for choosing the schools was the willingness of the school leadership to allow their teachers to take part in the study, which would, in turn, result in professional development. Besides, 30 English language teachers were purposively selected and guided by the data saturation principle, the said number was deemed sufficient for this initial study. Purposive sampling was preferred in this study based on its strength that it allows the researcher to target specific participants (English language teachers) who are likely to provide relevant and insightful data thereby enhancing credibility of the study findings. This could save time and resources in recruiting and interviewing participants. Similarly, by purposively selecting English language teachers who have direct experience with classroom assessment practices, validity and reliability of data was ensured. Moreover, purposive sampling enabled the researcher to gather rich and in-depth data on the research topic.

English subject was chosen due to its strategic importance as a medium of instruction for all subjects taught in secondary schools, save for Kiswahili. Similarly, taking 30 participants was also thought appropriate since the study was conducted during the corona pandemic. Thus, it was deemed dangerous and would be risky for both participants and researchers to discuss with a large number of participants at that material time. The decision to take a small sample in this study is also supported by Vasileiou et al. (2018). They argue that the sample size in qualitative research tends to be small to support the depth of case-oriented analysis fundamental to the inquiry model. Besides, 30 participants were divided into 5 groups of 6 participants each. Supporting this is Dzino-Silajdzic (2018), who maintains that for an ideal FGD, the recommended size of the group lies between five to eight participants

Data analysis procedures

The whole FGDs were recorded verbatim by using digital voice recorders. After that, the recordings were transcribed in Kiswahili and then translated into English. The data analysis was guided by Clark and Braun model (Braun & Clarke, 2006). Using this model, analysis was accomplished by adopting six steps: familiarizing with data, generating initial codes, searching for themes, reviewing themes, defining and naming themes, and producing the report.

In the context of this study, data familiarization involved thorough and repeated reading of various qualitative datasets generated from interviews. This process aimed to gain the general essence of the cleaned dataset in preparation for generating initial codes. Generating initial codes followed a data-driven (inductive) approach, where the research objective was revisited based on the message conveyed by the collected dataset. Searching for themes included sorting codes into themes and examined coded and collated data extracts for broader significant themes. Reviewing themes involved evaluating all relevant codes and data extracts under each theme to ensure each had sufficient supporting data and coherent support. Defining and naming themes involved creating a clear and concise description of what it represents in the data. Similarly, the phase entailed choosing a name for each theme that reflects its essence. Report production in this study involved creating a concise narrative to understand the experience with classroom assessment practices. Similarly, Computer-Assisted software (Microsoft Excel) assisted in analyzing themes identified, coded, analyzed, and illustrated using participant quotes.

In reporting, emerging findings were presented as summaries and narratives, illustrated with examples and quotations to capture respondents’ perspectives and experiences.

Findings and discussion

The results of this study are presented with four major themes. The themes are: teachers’ perceptions of classroom assessment practices, teachers’ perceptions of students’ expectations from assessment feedback, teachers’ perceived usefulness of the assessment feedback, and views on how to improve classroom assessment. Details are explained in the next section.

English language teachers’ perceptions of classroom assessment practices

Respondents were asked to share their insights on classroom assessment practices. The findings show that their understanding of classroom assessment influenced how they practiced the same in the classroom setting. Since the way people practice something is mainly influenced by their conceptual understanding, it was also deemed essential to gather how the participant understood the concept of Assessment. Most respondents viewed Assessment as an inquiry involving qualitative and quantitative descriptions of behavior conducted through observation, measurement, and judgment. Respondents viewed Assessment as a qualitative inquiry about the presence or absence of a supportive learning environment in schools, including students’ readiness to listen carefully to the teacher. Some participants opined that students’ readiness also involves the absence of all aspects that would hinder students from achieving their learning objectives. The remarks made by one respondent support this:

Classroom assessment is a complex phenomenon. Many of us examine whether the student understands what the Teacher has taught. But I think the concept is much broader. It begins when the student gets seated, whether they have settled, is attentive, and those around him are concentrating. Answering questions by raising hands does not necessarily mean they have understood or not understood (FGD, December 2023).

The respondent’s perception about presence or absence of certain conditions for learning including the student’s readiness to learn are useful things to consider before starting a lesson. However, the presence or absence of those conditions do not constitute assessment in any of its three forms. It is a misconception which needs to be addressed through continuous professional development.

For some respondents, Assessment meant checking the attainment of learning outcomes; i.e., reviewing whether the pre-determined learning outcomes have been achieved at the end of the instructional session. It was also disclosed that classroom assessment means checking students’ understanding of the lesson. The findings also suggest that some respondents perceived Assessment as an act of self-assessment where a teacher assesses him or herself on the extent to which their instructional strategies were effective. This was reiterated by one respondent who expressed that:

Classroom assessment is discovering whether the student has understood what the Teacher has taught. It involves the learner and the Teacher. The Teacher would assess whether the strategies were effective (FGD, December 2023).

It is clear from the narratives that marking and grading students’ work is the most common practice. It was also noted that students are given classroom activities individually or in a group. In addition, it was revealed that the participants gave students homework and oral questions. Sometimes, some students must make oral presentations before others to demonstrate their concept mastery. The findings also suggested that it is common for some teachers to make classroom observations to see students’ interaction, especially when given a classroom task. In this context, one of the participants had this to say:

I conduct classroom assessments by marking students’ exercise books. Marking enables me to detect spelling errors or grammatical mistakes. If I have plenty of time, I ask several students to write on the board while others watch and assess their fellow students (FGD, December 2023).

Another respondent echoes similar sentiments, remarking that:

I do assessments through oral questions, group activities, and objective questions to assess every lesson plan stage. Students’ evaluations and teacher evaluations come after completing the lesson. You cannot determine understanding through a small piece of paper but written assignments. Evaluation is done after marking the exercise books. Results of the Assessment enable the Teacher to make appropriate decisions on whether you need to provide remedial classes or repeat teaching the lesson to the whole class (FGD, December 2023).

Participants’ narratives conflate AoL with the use of assessment feedback to improve teaching. As such they do not seem to grasp the essence of AfL to wit English language teacher’s ability to identify the student’s learning needs so that remedial action can be taken.

Moreover, it can be discerned that the major assessment procedures practiced by teachers involved a sequence of teacher activities such as observing student behavior, providing opportunities for individual and group assignments, presentation, questioning, and obtaining feedback orally and in writing. The process culminates in student and teacher evaluation. The study by Chen and Bonner (2020) and Mussawy (2009) also established that classroom assessment practices used by teachers primarily focused on questioning methods, classroom discussions, classroom assignments, and projects. Nevertheless, the question remains as to how the different techniques are used to determine students’ learning needs.

English language teachers’ perceptions of students’ expectations from assessment feedback

The participants expressed mixed feelings on the objective "English language teachers’ perceptions of students’ expectations from assessment feedback." Some respondents perceived that most students hope to improve their learning and move to the next level. The students expect that assessment feedback will lead to a repetition of the lesson to clarify the areas that students did not understand. The students wish to receive positive or negative reinforcement after Assessment. According to some respondents, students expect to obtain good performance. Subscribing to this line of thinking, one of the participants said:

Each student has their expectation, some students use feedback to improve their learning, but some become demoralized with the results and do not improve. Some expect to get rewards because they believe they performed better; others hope to get punishment because they predict they have not performed well in their exercises (FGD, December 2023).

Another participant in his remarks also echoes the same sentiments:

The student expects negative and positive reinforcement. But the student always wants a good grade to show his parent. Some students desire to learn more when a teacher decides to repeat the lesson; if it is an examination, for example, from two exams, those who fail to think of repeating the class (FGD, December 2023).

It can be argued that the general perception amongst the majority of teachers involved in this study is that students’ expectations from the assessment feedback are to improve their learning, get reinforced, and improve their performance. This finding is also in tandem with Lizzio and Wilson (2008) study on assessing students’ perceptions of the quality and effectiveness of assessment feedback. These findings clearly underscore the prevalence of AoL which targets passing the exam (formative) rather than AfL which focuses on learning (formative). (Wiliam & Thompson, 2017).

English language teachers’ perceived usefulness of the assessment feedback

When participants were also asked for their opinions regarding the perceived usefulness of the assessment feedback, most said Assessment is critically important since it can be used to evaluate the pedagogy. This implies that Assessment can be a valuable tool for detecting the suitability of teaching methods. Further, it was also expressed that Assessment can be a tool for detecting whether the students have understood the lesson. Likewise, the findings disclosed that Assessment could inform learning. In this, the Assessment can determine the use of remedial teaching and provision of correction on the taught lesson. It was stated that it is from Assessment that a teacher can ponder the necessity of looking for external assistance from their fellow to strengthen the lesson taught. Regarding the perceived usefulness of the assessment feedback, one of the participants said the following:

Feedback enables me to evaluate my teaching methods and improve them accordingly. It also gives me the answer as to whether students have understood or not. For example, through item analysis, I will be able to determine whether the aspect of regular verbs has been mastered. In addition, the decision to conduct remedial classes will depend on such feedback. (FGD, December 2023).

Another participant expressed the following sentiments:

Students differ in their understanding; I will use an appropriate teaching method in their knowledge. If some students do not understand, I will request my fellow teacher/s for team teaching on that particular lesson (FGD, April 2020).

From the participants’ opinions, it can be discerned that the classroom assessment feedback is necessary mainly for evaluating pedagogy, detecting students’ understanding, and improving students learning. However, a critical analysis of the participants’ responses suggests that teachers are missing an essential element of classroom assessment: diagnosing learning difficulties for group and individual learners to provide the necessary support. That is the essence of AfL. In supporting this view Biggs (2003) and Wiliam and Thompson (2017) argues that students need sufficient feedback on their work to understand how they can improve, and in this sense, feedback is essential in promoting a deep approach to learning. The findings further concur with Kahembe’s study findings (Kahembe, 2017) that teachers positively perceive Assessment because it improves teaching and learning while promoting teachers’ and students’ accountability.

English language teachers’ views on how to improve classroom assessment

The study also asked the participants to express their opinions on improving classroom assessment. The participants felt the workshop was a promising way to address some challenges teachers encountered in their classroom assessments. Regarding participants’ suggestions on the workshop’s content, the study unveiled that the current confusion between students and teacher evaluation in the lesson should be well articulated. They also needed support on how classroom assessment could be used to assist students in improving their learning. The participants also believed in strengthening Assessment through supporting instructional materials. Providing teachers with sufficient books, teaching aids, instructional guides, and fulfilling teaching and learning needs was perceived to play a supportive role in improving Assessment. Regarding support that teachers would need to improve classroom assessment, one of the participants said

I think there should be regular workshops that will help us understand the proper way of carrying out assessments. Also, it is necessary to demonstrate deeply during the workshop how Assessment can be formative for improving students learning (FGD, December 2023).

Further, the participants mentioned points that were not directly relevant to the focus of this research, such as improving the teaching and learning environment, improving the living conditions, salary and promotion, as well as reducing the class size.

Conclusion

The study was conducted to explore English language teachers’ perceptions of classroom assessment practices, the student’s expectations of assessment feedback, the perceived usefulness, and suggestions for improving classroom assessment. From the results of the study, the following conclusions have been drawn:

First, teachers’ assessment practice consists of a sequence of teacher activities that involve observing student behaviour, providing opportunities for individual and group assignments, presentation, questioning, and obtaining feedback orally and in writing. This shows that teachers know that classroom assessment can improve students’ learning, using a variety of assessment techniques, including formative assessments, peer assessments, and self-assessments, as suggested by Hodgen and Marshall (2005).

Second, students’ expectations from the assessment feedback are to improve their learning, reinforce, and perform well. This indicates that teachers theoretically know that enhancing students’ learning is the aftermath of classroom assessment. However, they lack a practical understanding that student learning can best be enhanced by implementing AfL including the provision of assessment opportunities early in the learning process rather than just at the conclusion of units or courses (Wu et al., 2021).

Third, classroom assessment feedback is perceived to be cardinal, mainly for improving students’ learning. The respondents in this study failed to recognize an essential element of classroom assessment: diagnosing learning difficulties for group and individual learners so as to provide the necessary support, which is the essence of AfL. Finally, teachers perceived that their capacity to carry out assessment practices could be improved through tailor-made workshops. Implicitly, this suggests that over and above their theoretical understanding of classroom assessment, they needed to be further supported on how to implement Assessment for learning. This can be done through planned continuous professional development programmes whereby a climate of trust and cooperation between instructors and students can be cultivated (Davidson, 2019). In this sense, the findings of this study will increase the body of knowledge regarding AfL. Teachers can more effectively incorporate AfL tactics into their teaching practices and enhance the learning experiences of their students by addressing these concerns through focused professional development.

Study limitations

Despite positive contribution of this study, researchers were aware that qualitative study such as this is not free from bias. In order to bolster credibility and trustworthiness of the study findings. it is felt necessary to declare our bias and measures used to address them. Among the biases was our pre conceived understanding that English language teachers had in adequate knowledge and skills of carrying out assessment for learning. To address this bias, researchers reported all findings even those contradicting their beliefs. Secondly, before data collection, researchers were aware of response bias for some participants due to influence of response from other participants. With this in mind, we encouraged English language teachers to think independently and ask participants to write down their ideas before discussing them with the group. Likewise, researchers understood that having data analysed by only one researcher would lead to single perspectives in the findings. To address this, multiple coders were used in which more than one individual was used to analyse data independently to ensure that different perspectives are considered hence cross validation of the emerged codes. Equally, it was felt important share findings with the English language teachers to verify whether the findings and interpretation made are reflective of their perspectives. Besides, peer debriefing was involved in which the findings and interpretation were discussed with colleagues and experts in the field to gain different perspectives. Finally, participants for this research were purposely selected. For this reason findings of this study might not apply outside of the particular setting and participant characteristics. The educational contexts, instructional philosophies, and backgrounds of English language teachers may differ significantly. Therefore, not all English language teachers worldwide or even in different localities may find the findings useful. Apart from extensive qualitative data can be obtained through focus group discussions, the sample size of thirty English teachers may be deemed insufficient for making strong conclusions. In addition, the groups’ limited size of six teachers per group may have prevented them from reflecting the entire range of viewpoints that exist among English language teachers. Bearing this in mind, the study’s main goal was to investigate English teachers’ classroom assessment strategies in order to lay the foundation for further research in related educational environments. The support provided to teachers, based on the present research, may be applied in similar educational settings outside the purview of this investigation.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Habibu Dadi Ali

Habibu Dadi is a lecturer in the department of educational management and policy studies, college of Education, University of Dodoma-Tanzania. His teaching and research focus on Economics of Education and Finance, assessment in education, learning intervention, curriculum development, teacher professional development and educational leadership and policies.

Marcellina Mjenda

Marcellina Mjenda is an Assistant Lecturer in Mathematics at the University of Dodoma, Tanzania. Her research interests lie in mathematics education, particularly in enhancing students' mathematics skills through innovative instructional techniques and assessment practices.