Exploring the cognitions of Iranian university TEFL teachers and students of the efficacy of online assessment practices in the wake of Covid-19

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Department of ELT, Kermanshah Branch, Islamic Azad University, Kermanshah, Iran

Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic, a global crisis that presented public health challenges and disrupted education worldwide, has profoundly impacted educational systems. Despite considerable human and financial losses on a global scale, the pandemic unveiled an unprecedented opportunity for educational systems to embrace and incorporate online learning systems into their mainstream instructional agendas. Like many other countries, Iranian universities have converted their system into distance education to prevent the spread of the virus. Since the educational centers had already delivered two semesters of online education, there was a need to address the quality of online assessment to gauge the accountability of online pedagogical practices. Thus, the current study aimed to explore the perceptions of Iranian TEFL university teachers and students on implementing online assessment (OLA) during the pandemic. As such, 212 teachers and 325 postgraduate students completed the teachers’/students’ views towards implementing an online assessment survey developed by the researchers. The findings suggested that Iranian EFL teachers and students favor web-based assessment. There were similarities in perceptions of the teachers and students regarding familiarity with OLA, its feasibility and contribution to improving learning and feedback processes, and the value of implementing OLA. However, the findings highlight differences in the inadequacies of OLA.

Keywords

References

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Technology Assisted Language Education
Volume 1, Issue 4 - Serial Number 1
December 2023
Pages 17-37

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