Perceptions of teachers and students of the validity of an EFL oral test

Abstract

This study explores the perceptions of teachers and students in an EFL university in Chile and how these perceptions have an impact on the validity of the test. The research questions conducting the study were focused on the comparison between teachers‟ and students perceptions regarding oral tests. In order to elicit the perceptions of teachers, interviews were conducted in order to gather information regarding their evaluation, knowledge and general opinion of the oral tests. Students‟ perceptions were elicited through the application of a survey which gathered information regarding their levels of satisfaction, knowledge and general opinion of the oral tests. These perceptions were later on compared and contrasted. The results indicated that teachers agreed on several aspects of the test and had a general positive perception of it. Conversely, students had a negative perception of the overall test and displayed a very heterogeneous range of perceptions and opinions. The analysis conducted indicated that students are not fully informed of test procedures and criteria of evaluation, thus compromising the construct, face and consequential validity of the test. At the same time, teachers do not fully agree on the criteria of evaluation generating issues in the reliability of the test.