Self-Assessment in English Language Teaching and Learning in the Current Decade (2010-2020): A Systematic Review

Mona Hosseini,Vahid Nimehchisalem

doi:10.4236/ojml.2021.116066

Abstract

Self-assessment (SA), defined as the evaluation of process and product and the main feature of self-regulated learning, has been the focus of many recent studies. Due to the importance of SA, the purpose of this systematic review is to provide a comprehensive overview of relevant studies regarding the use of SA for teaching and learning English language. PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) was employed to collect studies on SA. The search for articles was done with the combination of these keywords: “self-regulation”, “self-assessment”, “foreign language learning”, “student”, and “teachers” in EBSCOhost research platform. We found 106 studies related to SA published in period of 2010-2020. After screening the title and abstracts for selecting articles, based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 18 articles were selected to be reviewed. These articles were closely related to the focus of this systematic review on the reliability and validity, effectiveness, accuracy as well as the modes of application of SA in English language learning-teaching. The paper starts with reviewing the definitions of SA and further it analyzes and synthesizes the selected studies to reply to the research questions. The paper concludes with the pedagogical implications and recommendations for future studies on various aspects of SA in the field of English language learning and teaching.

Highlights

As the number of studies on SA in the domain of English teaching and learning is relatively limited, this review focuses some aspects of SA and makes an attempt to answer the following research questions: 1) What issues are involved in using SA as a testing instrument? 2) What makes SA an effective material for improved learning and testing instrument?
This review article started by giving information on the history of SA and further, it introduced the different definitions of SA by different scholars
A chronological overview of these definitions shows that SA was applied as a testing instrument when it was introduced to educational setting, whereas later it started being treated and used as a learning material

Summary

Introduction

Proponents of constructivism move much of the responsibility from the teacher to the learner; they no longer see the teacher the central figure who spoon-feeds students in the classroom. In line with this trend, the current paradigm, referred to as Education 4.0, promotes notions like Flipped classroom approach, personalized learning, hands-on learning, and independent learning (Aziz Hussin, 2018). The teacher is expected to be engaged and keep the learner involved in process of assessment in an on-going manner throughout the learning experience (Farhady, 2021). Self-assessment (SA), our main focus in this review article, is one of these learner-oriented assessment methods that have attracted an increasingly large number of practitioners in recent years

Methods

Results

Conclusion