Washback effect from examinations: What can the teacher do?

Spratt, M. (2005). Washback and the classroom: The implications for teaching and learning of studies of washback from exams.Language Teaching Research, 9(1), pp. 5-29.

Background

The practice of teaching to ace examinations is common in many educational institutions. Examinations can have these washback effects, depending on a number of intervening factors such as classroom practices and teacher and student attitudes. This study proposes that by using knowledge about washback effectively, teaching and learning in the classroom can be made richer and so create more positive experiences.

Aims

The study aimed to provide teachers with a clearer idea of the roles they could play and the decisions they could make concerning the washback effects from examinations.

Sample

The sample used was of empirical studies of washback from external exams and tests that had been carried out in the field of English language teaching in Canada, Hong Kong, Japan, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.

Method

The term ‘washback’ was defined first and then the paper identified areas, namely curriculum, materials, teaching methods, feelings and attitudes as well as learning, in which washback had been found to have had an effect by the different studies. The intervening factors in each of the identified areas were then reviewed to see the level of influence those factors had on what washback occurred.

Findings

The examination of the intervening factors highlighted how much of the washback could not be considered an automatic or direct effect of examinations. The factors that influenced washback were identified as:

Teacher-related factors – their beliefs, attitudes, educational level and experience, and personalities.

Resources – availability of customised materials and examination support materials.

The school – school culture, the leadership style of the management team, the amount of time and number of students in the examination classes.

The examination – the stakes, the status of the language it tested, its purpose and the format employed were some considerations.

The researcher believed that, with this information, teachers would realise that washback was inevitable but that it was malleable and so could be used to the teachers’ advantage when planning classroom lessons.

Implications

The paper showed that teachers could become agents for promoting positive washback by making conscious decisions to control the factors that were in operation. This meant that teachers needed to make a series of decisions, both pedagogic and ethical, in order to promote positive washback.

Original article retrieved from EBSCOHost.