A study on English preparatory class students’ assessment preferences and test anxieties

Year 2018, Volume: 14 Issue: 3, 360 - 379, 15.09.2018

Bahar Sarısu(taş) Kagan Büyükkarcı

Abstract

Please fill up the following information accurately. (Please use Times New Roman, 12 pt.
A study on English preparatory class students’ assessment preferences and test anxieties
This study aims to determine English preparatory class students’ assessment preferences and test anxieties and whether there is a relationship between these two dependent variables or not. It also aims to see whether or not there is a significant difference between nationalities in terms of assessment preferences and test anxiety, and also to learn the reasons behind these differences if there are any. 147 university students who will study in English-medium departments at a private university participated in this study. In this study, a mixed method was adopted that integrated quantitative and qualitative data, which were collected through two inventories and one interview. The results present a report of students’ assessment preferences and also reveal that there are significant differences regarding nationality. The results have also shown that there is a significant difference in Turkish and foreign students assessment type preferences, grading & reporting preferences, and general test taking anxieties.
Information about Author(s)*
Author 1
Author (Last name, First name)	Sarısu(Taş), Bahar
Affiliated institution (University)	Antalya Bilim University
Country	Turkey
Email address	[e-mail]
Department & Rank	School of Foreign Languages & Instructor
Corresponding author (Yes/No) Write only one corresponding author.	Yes
Author 2
Author (Last name, First name)	Büyükkarcı,Kagan
Affiliated institution (University)	Süleyman Demirel University
Country	Turkey
Email address	[e-mail]
Department & Rank	Department of Foreign Language Education & Associate Professor
Corresponding author (Yes/No)	No
Author 3
Author (Last name, First name)
Affiliated institution (University)
Country
Email address
Department & Rank
Corresponding author (Yes/No)
Author 4
Author (Last name, First name)
Affiliated institution (University)
Country
Email address
Department & Rank
Corresponding author (Yes/No)

Keywords

foreign language learning; assessment; assessment preferences; test anxiety

References

• Anderson, L. W., Krathwohl, D. R., Airasian, P. W., Cruikshank, K. A., Mayer, R. E., Pintrich, P. R., & Raths, J. & Wittrock, MC (2001). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision of Bloom's taxonomy of educational objectives, abridged edition. White Plains, NY: Longman.
• Arslan, Y. (2013). Assessment preferences of sport science students. Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport & Tourism Education, 13, 132-136.
• Beller, M., & Gafni, N. (2000). Can item format (multiple choice vs. open-ended) account for gender differences in mathematics achievement?. Sex roles, 42(1-2), 1-21.
• Ben-Chaim, D. and Zoller, U. (1997). ‘Examination-type preferences of secondary school students and their teachers in the science disciplines’, Instructional Science 25(5), 347-367.
• Ben-Shakhar, G. and Sinai, Y. (1991). ‘Gender differences in multiple-choice tests: The role of differential guessing’, Journal of EducationalMeasurement28, 23-35.
• Birenbaum, M. (1994).Toward adaptive assessment—the student's angle. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 20(2), 239-255.
• Birenbaum, M. (1997). Assessment preferences and their relationship to learning strategies and orientations. Higher education, 33(1), 71-84.
• Birenbaum, M. and Feldman, R.A. (1998). ‘Relationships between learning patterns and attitudes towards two assessment formats’, Educational Research 40(1), 90-97.
• Büyükkarcı, K. (2010). The effect of formative assessment on learners’ test anxiety and assessment preferencesin efl context. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation), Cukurova University.
• Doğan, C. D. (2013). A modeling study about the factors affecting assessment preferences of pre-service teachers. Educational Sciences: Theory & Practice, 13(3), 1621-1627.
• Dörnyei, Z. (2007). Research methods in applied linguistics: Quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methodologies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Creswell, J. W., & Clark, V. L. P. (2007). Designing and conducting mixed methods research.
• Gellman, E. and Berkowitz, M. (1993). ‘Test-item type: what students prefer and why’, College Student Journal, 27(1), 17-26.
• Gibbs, G., & Simpson, C. (2004). Does your assessment support your students’ learning. Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 1(1), 1-30.
• Gülbahar, Y.,& Büyüköztürk, Ş. (2008). Adapting the evaluation preference scale to Turkish. Hacettepe University Education Faculty Journal, 35(35).
• Huberty, T. J. (2009). Test and performance anxiety. Principal leadership, 10(1), 12-16.
• Nunan, D. (1992). Research methods in language learning. Cambridge University Press.
• Salehi, M., & Marefat, F. (2014). The effects of foreign language anxiety and test anxiety on foreign language test performance. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 4(5), 931-940.
• Sarason, I. (1986). Test Anxiety, Worry and Cognitive Interference. In Self-Related Cognitions in Anxiety and Motivation (pp. 19-34). Hillsdale, New Jersey London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
• Sieber, J. E. O’Neil Jr., HF & Tobias, S.(1977). Anxiety, learning and instruction.
• Selvarajah, C., Pio, E., & Meyer, D. (2006). Assessment preferences of MBA and MBus students: a New Zealand study.
• Spielberger, CD (1972). Current trends in theory and research on anxiety. In CD Spielberger (Ed.), Anxiety: Current trends in theory and research (Vol. 1, pp. 3–19). New York: Academic Press.
• Teemant, A. (1997). The role of language proficiency, test anxiety, and testing preferences in ESL students' test performance in content-area courses(Doctoral dissertation, The Ohio State University).
• Traub, R. E. & McRury, K. (1990). ‘Multiple choice vs. free response in the testing of scholastic achievement’, in Ingenkamp, K. and Jager, R. S. (eds.), Tests und Trends 8: Jahrbuch der Pädagogischen Diagnostik. Weinheim und Basel: Beltz, pp. 128-159.
• Van de Watering, G., Gijbels, D., Dochy, F., & Van der Rijt, J. (2008). Students’ assessment preferences, perceptions of assessment and their relationships to study results. Higher Education, 56(6), 645-658.
• Zeidner, M. (1987). Essay versus multiple-choice type classroom exams: the student’s perspective. The Journal of Educational Research, 80(6), 352-358.
• Zeidner, M. (1998). Test Anxiety The State of Art. Plenum Press. New York pp. 18-19.
• Zinbarg, R. E., Brown, T. A., Barlow, D. H., &Rapee, R. M. (2001). Anxiety sensitivity, panic, and depressed mood: A reanalysis teasing apart the contributions of the two levels in the hierarchical structure of the Anxiety Sensitivity Index. Journal of abnormal psychology, 110(3), 372.