A Study of Socio-Cultural Conception of Writing Assessment Literacy: Iranian EFL Teachers’ and Students’ Perspectives

Abstract

This is a mixed method study aimed at assessing the extent to which writing assessment literacy (AL) of Iranian English language teachers reflects its socio-cultural construct. The five key aspects of quality assessment for writing based on Lee’s 37 study and Coombs’s 14 socio-cultural conception of AL are used as a framework to analyze both student and teacher data, acknowledging the importance of including students’ perspectives. Quantitative data, collected through a questionnaire answered by 105 English language students, were combined and compared with qualitative data from three EFL teachers. Data were analyzed in relation to the key competencies for writing assessment. On the whole, limited writing assessment skills of EFL teachers were suggested from the perspectives of both groups of stakeholders (i.e., students and teachers). More specifically, results revealed that students’ report of the teachers’ writing AL did not reflect the five key principles. A general need to enhance the socio-cultural aspect of writing AL among Iranian EFL teachers was highlighted as well.