Abstract
The notion of washback has been a widespread topic in language teaching and testing literature and has been discussed and looked at from various perspectives. The significance of the topic emerges from the fact that the consequences of tests greatly determine or shape the nature of language teaching, learning, and testing. 
 
 This paper aims to explore the notion of washback based on current perspectives in the literature and the needs of a specific teaching setting, which is the language Program at Oman Tourism College (OTC). The Literature Review section reviews the literature trying to shed light on the notion of washback as a core construct in language teaching and learning. The second section will discuss the influences of washback in ELT with a special reference to a teaching context. Finally, some useful implications are drawn to come up with recommendations for increasing the positive washback and reducing the negatively of it.
Highlights
Definition and Historical PerspectiveVarious definitions have been given to the term washback ranging from simple to very complex. Bailey (1996, p. 256), for example, defines washback as “the influence of testing on teaching and learning”. Messick (1996, p. 243) defines washback as “the extent to which the text influences language teachers and learners to do the things that they would not necessarily otherwise do”
This paper aims to explore the notion of washback based on current perspectives in the literature and the needs of a specific teaching setting, which is the language Program at Oman Tourism College (OTC)
The second section will discuss the influences of washback in ELT with a special reference to a teaching context
Summary
Various definitions have been given to the term washback ranging from simple to very complex. Bailey (1996, p. 256), for example, defines washback as “the influence of testing on teaching and learning”. Messick (1996, p. 243) defines washback as “the extent to which the text influences language teachers and learners to do the things that they would not necessarily otherwise do”. Providing historical perspective of the notion of washback, Wall (2013) states that the discourse regarding the washback of high stakes testing only appeared in the field of language testing in the early 1990s She adds that before this time, there were only general claims about the impact of tests on the curriculum and there was uncertainty whether this influence had really existed. They state that Alderson, for example, discussed the potential powerful impact of tests and called for innovations in the language curriculum by using the outcomes of language testing. They claim that Davies had suggested that curriculum should be led and influenced by tests. As for Morrow, they discuss that he included the notion of washback validity to explain the relation between testing and both teaching and learning
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