Application of the Task-Based Language Assessment in the Blended Efl Learning Environment

Abstract

The present study aims to examine how Task-based Language Assessment (TBLA) should be administered in the blended EFL learning environment. To achieve this, an 8-week TBLA procedure was conducted in the blended learning environment in the English Preparatory Program at a state university in Central Anatolia, Turkey. 54 students and 8 instructors participated in the study. One listening and speaking or one reading and writing task was conducted in the online or face-to-face environment each week, and the students’ performances were assessed via rubrics to see whether the EFL students’ language skills-based and overall performances in online and face-to-face TBLA environments differed. At the end of each task, one-minute papers were employed to learn about the students’ perceptions and performances and the instructors’ perceptions and practices during the online and face-to-face TBLA procedures. When the whole procedure was completed, an adapted version of the Students’ Perceptions of Assessment Questionnaire (SPAQ) was administered to discover whether the students’ perceptions towards TBLA in the blended learning environment differed in terms of gender and level of proficiency. What is more, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 students and 8 instructors to get a deeper understanding of their perceptions, performances, and practices. The quantitative data from the rubrics and the questionnaire were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistics through Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) 22, and the qualitative data obtained from the semi-structured interviews and one-minute papers were analysed through inductive content analysis.