Speakers
Description
Language assessment literacy (LAL) is a foundational competency for pre-service teachers of English, particularly in the context of Vietnam’s Curriculum 2018, which emphasizes learner-centered approaches and balanced formative and summative assessment. Despite its importance, limited research has explored Vietnamese pre-service teachers’ confidence and preparedness in LAL. This study addresses this gap by investigating self-perceived confidence levels and the factors influencing LAL among Vietnamese pre-service English teachers. Employing a mixed-methods approach, data were collected from 103 pre-service teachers through a validated questionnaire, complemented by in-depth interviews with eight participants. Quantitative findings indicate that participants generally report high confidence in their assessment knowledge and skills. Qualitative analysis reveals that their beliefs and practices are aligned with the learner-centered assessment principles advocated by Curriculum 2018. Notably, the study identifies teaching experience and formal training as the most significant influences on assessment confidence, while also highlighting the complex interplay of personal and contextual factors that can both support and challenge practical assessment implementation. The novelty of this research lies in its comprehensive mapping of LAL within the specific context of Curriculum 2018, providing new insights into the readiness of future English teachers in Vietnam. The findings underscore the urgent need for targeted institutional support to further develop assessment literacy and enhance professional competencies. This research fills a critical gap in the literature and offers actionable recommendations for teacher education policy and practice in the era of educational reform in Vietnam and similar contexts.
Keywords
Language assessment literacy; pre-service teachers; Curriculum 2018; English language teaching; Vietnam; formative assessment; summative assessment; teacher education.
Biography
Dr Cao Thị Hồng Phương obtained a PhD in Applied Linguistics and an M.A in TESOL from Victoria of Wellington, New Zealand. Phuong has won many scholarships for her life-long learning, including ASEAN Scholarship, and Vitoria Doctoral Scholarship.
She curently works as a teacher trainer at Hanoi National University of Education. She has also taught in Academic English in New Zealand and Singapore. Phuong’s research includes language curriculum development, textbook evaluation, and language assessment, with publications in Asian Englishes, Asian Applied Linguistics, and Asia TEFL. She has authored book chapters with Routledge and IGI Global and frequently presents at international conferences in TESOL and Applied Linguistics.
