The power of language tests In Turkish context: A critical study

Year 2019, Volume: 15 Issue: 1, 210 - 230, 25.03.2019

Tuçe Öztürk Karataş Zuhal Okan

https://doi.org/10.17263/jlls.547715

Abstract

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The power of language tests In Turkish context: A critical study
High-stakes tests are often introduced to bring about change on educational practices and thus lead to pedagogical reform. The Field Knowledge Test (FKT) for teacher candidates of English in Turkey is an example of such an attempt. This study aims to giving voice to English language teacher educators and student teachers to view the FKT critically to investigate if it has brought about the intended changes and its impact on its main stakeholders. The study, first, presents Critical Language Testing (CLT). Then, it gives information on the context of the study. Data collection for the study involved 153 test takers and 23 teacher educators working at ELT Departments in Turkey. Two open-ended questionnaires were used to survey participants’ perceptions of the FKT in terms of its impact on the nature of education they receive, their attitudes and feelings and also on their academic and personal lives. Analysis of data paved the way for further studies on how high stakes tests might or might not be efficient agents of change in various educational contexts.
Information about Author(s)*
Author 1
Author (Last name, First name)	Öztürk Karataş, Tuçe
Affiliated institution (University)	Çukurova University
Country	Turkey
Email address	[e-mail]
Department & Rank	English Language Teaching Department (ELT)
Corresponding author (Yes/No) Write only one corresponding author.	no
Author 2
Author (Last name, First name)	Okan, Zuhal
Affiliated institution (University)	Çukurova University
Country	Turkey
Email address	[e-mail]
Department & Rank	English Language Teaching Department (ELT)
Corresponding author (Yes/No)	Yes
Author 3
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Affiliated institution (University)
Country
Email address
Department & Rank
Corresponding author (Yes/No)
Author 4
Author (Last name, First name)
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Keywords

the use of test, the power of test, test impact, consequences of test

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