International Journal of Language & Linguistics

Exploring Secondary Teachers’ Perceptions of Classroom Assessment in a Tunisian Context
Tesnim Ounis

Abstract
“Classroom assessment” of foreign languages is an important area of examination because it is considered as an essential process influencing both the teaching and the learning practices and beliefs (Cohen, 1994). Moreover, it seems that perceptions that teachers have on assessment are likely to influence their assessment practices. This study is set up to explore teachers’ perceptions of oral assessment in order to determine their beliefs, attitudes and views that affect their assessment practices. It also seeks to determine whether there are significant differences in teachers’ perceptions of oral assessment by gender. Data were collected from a questionnaire survey with 40 teachers. Teachers’ perceptions of assessment were measured through a calculation of the percentage. In addition, descriptive statistics such as means and standard deviations as well as inferential statistics, t-test for independent samples were used in this study. The findings revealed that secondary teachers who participated in the study reported favorable and positive perceptions of oral assessment. Participants considered the ultimate goal of oral assessment is to make decisions on teaching and learning. The majority of the teachers also perceived that the basic role of assessment is to raise learners’ concentration on their efforts in learning. Furthermore, the usefulness of oral assessment in making students confident and in enhancing their performance was maintained by a large proportion of the participants.

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