The relationship between teachers' use of classroom assessment techniques and EFL students' learning motivation: A study in middle schools in Ba Ria Vung Tau: A case student at Chau Thanh Secondary School: Master of TESOL

Abstract

Given that proper classroom assessment promotes learning motivation, this study investigates how EFL teachers employed forms of classroom assessment and how these assessment forms are related to different types of learning motivation. Data were collected from classroom observations, questionnaires, and interviews at a grammar school and a regular school in Vietnam. First, we observed eight EFL secondary school classes to explore how these teachers assessed students in the classroom. Then, we administered a classroom assessment questionnaire and learning motivation to explore the correlation between classroom assessment and learning motivation. Finally, we conducted semi structured interviews to get in-depth information about such relationship. The results showed that the relationship between classroom assessment and learning motivation at the grammar school was generally strong although the teachers assessed students less often than those at the regular school. The students revealed that it was not the frequency but way of assessment that fostered their learning motivation. The results suggest an inclusion of training assessment techniques in teacher education programs and teachers' use of proper assessment techniques to enhance learning motivation.