Examining classroom writing assessment literacy: a focus on in-service EFL teachers in Iran

Writing assessment literacy (WAL) has received research attention over the past few years. This study aimed at investigating writing assessment knowledge of Iranian English language teachers along with their conceptions and practices of writing assessment based on Crusan et al.'s (Assessing Writing 28:43-56, 2016) study in order to have a better understanding of their current situation and to predict and accommodate for future writing assessment requirements. The study further aimed at examining how teachers' knowledge, conception, and practice of writing assessment are influenced by contextual and experiential factors. To accomplish this goal, a test of writing assessment knowledge together with an adapted version of a questionnaire developed by Crusan et al. (Assessing Writing 28:43-56, 2016) for writing assessment conceptions and practice was distributed among 120 Iranian in-service teachers selected based on convenience sampling. The results of the study have shown inadequate levels of writing assessment knowledge for participating teachers. With regard to the conceptions of writing assessment, majority of the participants valued innovative assessment methods like portfolio and self/peer assessment methods although in practice, they rarely used these methods. The study revealed no impact of teaching experience and context on teachers' writing assessment knowledge and practice. The findings of this study contribute to our current understanding of WAL development and provide a more accurate picture of writing assessment training needs of Iranian teachers and the development of more efficient teacher education courses.