EFL Teachers' Perceptions of Listening and Speaking Performance Examinations at the Middle School Level: Evidence from Türkiye

Abstract

This study investigates middle school English teachers' perceptions of performance-based listening and speaking exams across the preparation, implementation, and post-exam phases following the introduction of these exams as a requirement in Türkiye in 2023. The study employed a basic qualitative research design. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 20 English teachers working in public middle schools in eight provinces of Türkiye. The data were analysed through qualitative content analysis, and intercoder reliability was calculated as .89. Teachers generally perceived the exams as beneficial for student learning and classroom practice, associating them with active language use, motivation, participation, and a wider range of classroom activities. They also reported several barriers to implementation, including overcrowded classrooms, time constraints, insufficient audio equipment, student shyness, and difficulty maintaining consistency in grading. All participants reported scoring listening exams only with answer keys, and fill-in-the-blank and short-answer items were the most common formats. For speaking exams, all participants reported using rubrics, although rubric design and application varied considerably. Post-exam support for underperforming students differed across teachers, and some offered none because of time limitations. These findings point to a need for regular low-stakes oral practice in class, shared scoring criteria for speaking exams, structured post-exam support, and professional development in language assessment literacy.

Keywords

• listening assessment
• speaking assessment
• performance-based assessment
• teacher perceptions
• language assessment literacy

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