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Title: The impact of formative assessment on developing EFL student-teachers’ language competences as domain-specific

 

Vol. 11(3), 2023, pp. 27-48.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.46687/FWVC2082.

 

Author: Dr. Anzela Nikolovska

About the author: Dr. Anzela Nikolovska is Full Professor of English Language Teaching Methodology (undergraduate studies), Assessment in TEFL (MA studies) and Second Language Acquisition (doctoral studies) at Blaze Koneski Faculty of Philology, Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, the Republic of North Macedonia. Her major research interests include: teacher competences, mentoring, assessment in TEFL, vocabulary acquisition, psycholinguistic aspects of language acquisition and learning strategies. She has co-authored two books and has designed supplementary EFL materials for primary and secondary level.  She has led and participated in a number of national research projects and workshops for English language teachers. Prof. Nikolovska is a former president of the Macedonian Society for the Study of English and of the state Matura committee as well as a former member of the organizing committee of the English Language Teachers’ Association of Macedonia.

e-mail: anzela.nikolovska@flf.ukim.edu.mk             

ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0101-782X

 

Author: Dr. Mira Bekar

About the author: Dr. Mira Bekar is Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, R. N. Macedonia. She obtained her PhD degree at Purdue University, USA. She has been teaching applied linguistics and academic writing for more than 20 years now and has worked with Macedonian and international students both in Macedonia and the US. She has organized and participated in many workshops on academic writing, principles of argumentation, rhetoric and teaching English. She translates monographs, professional and academic articles. Her research interests include (critical) discourse analysis, academic L1/L2 writing, online communication, and qualitative research methods. She has published chapters and scientific articles in professional monographs and journals in Macedonian and English.

ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8649-6232

 

Author: Dr. Zorica Trajkova Strezovska

About the author: Dr. Zorica Trajkova Strezovska is a Professor of English Linguistics at the Department of English Language and Literature at Ss. Cyril and Methodius University in Skopje, North Macedonia. Her research interests are mainly in the area of Pragmatics and Critical discourse analysis, but also SLA/FLA Teaching instruction and Materials design. She is the author of Metadiscourse: Pragmatic Role of Metadiscourse Markers in Persuasion (2019) and co-author of Protect 1, English for Law Enforcement Students, Textbook (2012, 2017, 2022), Protect 2, English for Law Enforcement, Textbook (2012, 2018), Speech Acts: Requesting, Thanking, Apologizing and Complaining in Macedonian and English (2014), Investigating Media Discourse: Theoretical and Practical Approaches and Investigating Political Discourse: Theoretical and Practical Approaches (2023). She has published internationally in linguistic journals and volumes including Springer, Thesis, Lodz Papers in Pragmatics, Respectus Philologicus, Journal of Contemporary Philology, Research in English and Applied Linguistics REAL Studies, and others.

ORCID iD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2346-978X

 

Link: http://silc.fhn-shu.com/issues/2023-3/SILC_2023_Vol_11_Issue_3_027-048_22.pdf

 

Citation (APA style): Nikolovska, A., Bekar, M., & Trajkova Strezovska, Z. (2023). The impact of formative assessment on developing EFL student-teachers’ language competences as domain-specific. Studies in Linguistics, Culture, and FLT, 11(3), 27-48. https://doi.org/10.46687/FWVC2082.

 

Abstract:  The paper reports on the outcomes of research carried out at a North Macedonian public university aimed at developing the language competences of prospective EFL teachers through formative assessment.  For the study’s purposes, a CEFR-based assessment tool was designed for teacher, peer and self-assessment of the ETP (English-for-teaching purposes) competences of fourth year student–teachers (n=15) micro-teaching lower year students. Fluency, accuracy, interaction, stimulating the development of ideas, and addressing audiences were the formative assessment criteria used to check if there was progress from the first to the third micro-teaching session as a result of formative feedback and assessment training. Additionally, two surveys for student-teachers and peer-assessors were used aimed at exploring: a) the effects of formative feedback on students’ language competences and teaching skills; b) the effects of formative assessment training on students’ peer- and self-assessment skills; and c) the professional and personal benefits of formative assessment training for students.

Apart from many personal benefits from the project, findings revealed positive effects of formative assessment on students’ language competences and teaching skills; specifically on the awareness of the complexity of ETP competences and the skills for tackling various classroom, assessment and material design challenges.

Key words: formative assessment, pre-service EFL teachers, language competences, English-for-teaching purposes, CEFR.

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