Comparing Language Assessment Literacy and the Challenges of Iranian EFL Teachers: TEFL vs Non-TEFL Background

The present study was an attempt to investigate language assessment literacy among EFL teachers in the Iranian context aiming at studying the implications of assessment literacy for TEFL teacher education reform. For this purpose, 20 EFL teachers in Iranian language institutes (Bayan, Azmoon, Zaban Sara, and Marefat institutes) were randomly picked for an extensive semi-structured examination. All the meetings were categorized and transcribed and after being analyzed, they were recorded on a Digital Voice Recorder (DVR). The results revealed that Iranian instructors were found well-acquainted with assessment literacy components. Likewise, it turned out that novice teachers with a TEFL background were more aware of assessment literacy and its significance in teacher education. However, in terms of other assessment components such as test administration, selecting the best assessment methods, and communicating assessment results experienced teachers with a TEFL background presented more to-the-point concepts compared to their counterparts in the non-TEFL group, indicating that the teachers with a TEFL background could perceive the aforementioned teacher assessment literacy components better than their non-TEFL counterpart. The findings imply that EFL language institute instructors` literacy in educational assessment particularly in especially in communicating assessment results to others and valid grading of the learners’ assessment is found insufficient.