High School Entrance Exam Effect on the Teaching of English: A Case Study of Teachers’ Experiences

Öz

English education programs are updated to keep up with new trends and approaches. Curriculum designers introduce the changes into the curriculum. The use of innovations in the classroom is explained to pre-service and in-service teachers. Nevertheless, there are multiple complaints regarding implementation, especially during the exam preparation process. Since the teachers are expected to prepare students for high stakes exams, some practical difficulties emerge as a result of the discrepancies between following the curriculum and preparing for the exam. This study is therefore set out to determine the effects of high-school entrance exams on the implementation of the English curriculum. The methodological approach taken in this study is a mixed methodology based on the teachers’ views. 201 EFL teachers working at lower secondary schools filled out the questionnaire regarding their in-class practices. Among the teachers, 10 teachers are interviewed with taking ample notes. To collect the quantitative and qualitative data, web tools are utilized due to the vexatious process during the Covid-19 pandemic days. The results of the study reveal that the high-school entrance test has negative effects regarding the approaches and methods employed in the classes. Furthermore, classroom practices differ in different grades. The negative washback effects of high-stakes tests outweigh the positive ones in terms of the use of the English language in a communicative way.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Curriculum
• EFL teachers
• High-stakes exams
• Washback Effect

İngilizce Öğretiminde Lise Giriş Sınavı Etkisi: Öğretmenlerin Deneyimleri Üzerine Bir Durum Çalışması

Öz

İngilizce öğretim programları yeni eğilimlere ve yaklaşımlara ayak uyduracak şekilde güncellenir. Müfredat tasarımcıları müfredata değişiklikleri ekler. Yeniliklerin sınıfta kullanımı hizmet öncesi ve hizmet içi öğretmenlere aktarılır. Bununla birlikte, özellikle sınava hazırlık sürecinde uygulamaya ilişkin çok sayıda şikâyet bulunmaktadır. Öğretmenlerin öğrencileri yüksek çıtalı sınavlara hazırlaması beklendiğinden, müfredatı takip etme ile sınava hazırlanma arasındaki tutarsızlıkların bir sonucu olarak bazı uygulama güçlükleri ortaya çıkmaktadır. Bu nedenle bu çalışma, lise giriş sınavlarının İngilizce müfredatının uygulanması üzerindeki etkilerini belirlemek amacıyla hazırlanmıştır. Bu araştırmada benimsenen yöntembilimsel yaklaşım, öğretmenlerin görüşlerine dayalı karma bir yaklaşımdır. Ortaokullarda görev yapan 201 İngilizce öğretmeni sınıf içi uygulamalarıyla ilgili olan anketi doldurmuştur. Öğretmenler arasında 10 öğretmenle not alınarak görüşme yapılmıştır. Nitel ve nicel verilerin toplanması için Covid-19 günlerinin can sıkıcı süreci nedeniyle internet araçları kullanılmıştır. Bu çalışmanın sonuçları, lise giriş sınavının sınıflarda uygulanan yaklaşım ve yöntemlere ilişkin olumsuz etkilerinin olduğunu ortaya koymaktadır. Ayrıca, sınıf içi uygulamalar değişik kademelerde farklılık göstermektedir. Yüksek çıtalı testlerin olumsuz ket vurma etkileri, İngilizce dilinin iletişimsel bir şekilde kullanılması açısından olumlu ket vurma etkilerine ağır basmaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Müfredat
• İngilizce öğretmenleri
• Yüksek çıtalı sınavlar
• Ket vurma etkisi

Kaynakça

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