A Sociocultural Perspective on Assessment for Learning: The Case of a Malaysian Primary School ESL Context

Abstract

Social constructivists believe that formative assessments of students’ learning are of great worth to the learners. So, they consider assessment for learning (AFL) as an interactive process in which teachers and peers help learners use their zone o f proximal development (ZPD) to progress to the next step in their learning. Based on Vygotsky‘s socio-cultural perspective, AFL is an interactive process in which teacher and learners discuss about learning intentions and how best to improve teaching and learning performance and accomplish success. This study presents an investigation carried out in a Malaysian primary school ESL context to suggest how AFL is viewed from sociocultural perspective. The results suggested that AFL from sociocultural perspective put a great emphasis on authentic tasks and social interaction between teacher and learners.