Associations Between Teachers’ Attitudes Toward the Final Exam in the Norwegian Language Arts Subject and Washback: A Survey Among Norwegian Secondary Teachers

The issue of washback effects from tests on instruction has been extensively investigated. The nature and extent of washback depend on many factors, some of which are related to teachers and exams. Work to redesign the national written exams in Norwegian Language Arts (NLA) for secondary school beg...

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Main Authors: Harald Eriksen, Aslaug Fodstad Gourvennec, Vibeke Rønneberg, Marte Blikstad-Balas
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Cappelen Damm Akademisk NOASP 2024-12-01
Series:Nordic Journal of Literacy Research
Subjects:
Online Access:https://nordicliteracy.net/index.php/njlr/article/view/5309
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author Harald Eriksen
Aslaug Fodstad Gourvennec
Vibeke Rønneberg
Marte Blikstad-Balas
author_facet Harald Eriksen
Aslaug Fodstad Gourvennec
Vibeke Rønneberg
Marte Blikstad-Balas
author_sort Harald Eriksen
collection DOAJ
description The issue of washback effects from tests on instruction has been extensively investigated. The nature and extent of washback depend on many factors, some of which are related to teachers and exams. Work to redesign the national written exams in Norwegian Language Arts (NLA) for secondary school began in 2020, placing the issue of washback effects from exams on teachers’ instruction and assessment on the agenda. However, there is no systematic knowledge about the extent and nature of washback from the current exams. The present study reports on a survey of NLA teachers in lower- and upper-secondary school (N = 508) by investigating the washback effects they perceive and their attitudes toward the existing exams, as well as exploring how perceived washback and attitudes are related using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results show that, as regards instruction, teachers believe there is a washback effect from the NLA exams. This effect on instruction is strongly associated with teachers’ attitudes toward the exams. In contrast, the association between the teachers’ attitudes and the washback they perceive on their own formal assessment practices is rather weak in numerical terms.
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publisher Cappelen Damm Akademisk NOASP
record_format Article
series Nordic Journal of Literacy Research
spelling doaj-art-7c0ea9b50cf14089a631663cbe1723572025-08-20T01:58:59ZengCappelen Damm Akademisk NOASPNordic Journal of Literacy Research2464-15962024-12-0110210.23865/njlr.v10.5309Associations Between Teachers’ Attitudes Toward the Final Exam in the Norwegian Language Arts Subject and Washback: A Survey Among Norwegian Secondary TeachersHarald Eriksen0Aslaug Fodstad Gourvennec1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7157-8470Vibeke Rønneberg2Marte Blikstad-Balas3Oslo Metropolitan University, NorwayUniversity of Stavanger, NorwayUniversity of Stavanger, NorwayUniversity of Oslo, Norway The issue of washback effects from tests on instruction has been extensively investigated. The nature and extent of washback depend on many factors, some of which are related to teachers and exams. Work to redesign the national written exams in Norwegian Language Arts (NLA) for secondary school began in 2020, placing the issue of washback effects from exams on teachers’ instruction and assessment on the agenda. However, there is no systematic knowledge about the extent and nature of washback from the current exams. The present study reports on a survey of NLA teachers in lower- and upper-secondary school (N = 508) by investigating the washback effects they perceive and their attitudes toward the existing exams, as well as exploring how perceived washback and attitudes are related using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results show that, as regards instruction, teachers believe there is a washback effect from the NLA exams. This effect on instruction is strongly associated with teachers’ attitudes toward the exams. In contrast, the association between the teachers’ attitudes and the washback they perceive on their own formal assessment practices is rather weak in numerical terms. https://nordicliteracy.net/index.php/njlr/article/view/5309L1backwashwriting assessmentwriting instruction
spellingShingle Harald Eriksen
Aslaug Fodstad Gourvennec
Vibeke Rønneberg
Marte Blikstad-Balas
Associations Between Teachers’ Attitudes Toward the Final Exam in the Norwegian Language Arts Subject and Washback: A Survey Among Norwegian Secondary Teachers
Nordic Journal of Literacy Research
L1
backwash
writing assessment
writing instruction
title Associations Between Teachers’ Attitudes Toward the Final Exam in the Norwegian Language Arts Subject and Washback: A Survey Among Norwegian Secondary Teachers
title_full Associations Between Teachers’ Attitudes Toward the Final Exam in the Norwegian Language Arts Subject and Washback: A Survey Among Norwegian Secondary Teachers
title_fullStr Associations Between Teachers’ Attitudes Toward the Final Exam in the Norwegian Language Arts Subject and Washback: A Survey Among Norwegian Secondary Teachers
title_full_unstemmed Associations Between Teachers’ Attitudes Toward the Final Exam in the Norwegian Language Arts Subject and Washback: A Survey Among Norwegian Secondary Teachers
title_short Associations Between Teachers’ Attitudes Toward the Final Exam in the Norwegian Language Arts Subject and Washback: A Survey Among Norwegian Secondary Teachers
title_sort associations between teachers attitudes toward the final exam in the norwegian language arts subject and washback a survey among norwegian secondary teachers
topic L1
backwash
writing assessment
writing instruction
url https://nordicliteracy.net/index.php/njlr/article/view/5309
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