The Study of the Currently Practiced Assessment Techniques in Conversation Courses for English Translation Students in Iranian Universities

Abstract

Considering “Conversion courses” as fundamental prerequisite in English Language Translation major in Iran, it is crystal clear that the quality of relevantly employed teaching methodology and subsequent adopted assessment procedures will directly influence the prospect achievement of the target learners. As a result, the researchers in the realm of pedagogical assessment have constantly attempted to explore the most applicable methods. Thus, in the current research project, the researchers aimed at delving into the current statuesque and problems in order to present an innovative model of oral assessment as a practical solution. To this end, the present study was conducted in 4 Conversation classes with 4 instructors at Islamic Azad University, Shahr-e- Qods branch through 4 main phases which entailed a complete Mixed Method research design. Consequently, the results reflected on significant inconsistencies among the different raters’ Conversation Courses assessment regarding their conceptualization, pedagogical performance and the standard criteria globally considered to validate assessments.