Teaching and Assessment of English Reading Skill at Secondary Level in Bangladesh: Practices and Challenges

Abstract

This qualitative study tried to explore Bangladeshi secondary English teachers‘ and students‘ understanding of English reading skill; strategies secondary English teachers employed to teach and assess English reading skill; resources used in teaching and assessment; English reading skill assessment practices in schools; barriers teachers faced in teaching and assessing reading; and the possible ways to improve the teaching and assessment in schools. The study employed semi-structured interviews with four English teachers from two secondary schools in Dhaka city; observed five teaching sessions of each of the four teachers for long 11 months from January to November in 2017; organised Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) with 40 students in four equal groups. 10 learners in each group were selected through lottery from grades IX and X of the selected schools. Additionally, documents such as the National Curriculum (NCTB, 2012a); English for Today (NCTB, 2012b); English Grammar and Composition (NCTB, 2016); Sample Test prepared by NCTB (Appendix 8); Guidelines for the Test Setters and Markers for English (Appendix 10); a test (question paper) used in a half-yearly examination of a school (Appendix 9) were analysed. One Curriculum Specialist from the National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) and a teacher educator from a Govt. Teachers‘ Training College, Bangladesh were also interviewed with a semi-structured interview schedule (Appendix 7). The data collected through interviews, observations, and FGDs were transcribed, coded, and then categorised based on the major themes emerged during data analysis. During transcribing, coding, and categorising of the data, findings of the study emerged. The major findings of the study included teachers and students did nothave clear understanding of English reading skill; English reading teaching was influenced by GTM, not by the NCTB-suggested three stages; teachers did not comply with the curriculum guidelines regarding continuous assessment (CA) or assessment for learning (AfL) and they partly followed the guidelines regarding assessment of learning (AoL) or summative assessment; teachers used commercially produced materials to teach English reading skill instead of the NCTB-prepared materials; the major challenges faced by teachers in teaching of reading included teachers‘ lack of understanding, large classes, workload, short time allotted for each period, and students‘ lack of interest in reading. Regarding assessment of reading, like other countries (Balfakeh, 2009; Marland, 2003), the Bangladeshi teachers, too, had wrong conception of assessment. Moreover, the inclusion of seen passages; insufficient training of teachers; and lack of monitoring and supervision from the education authority were some of the challenges. The identified challenges can be minimised through organising rigorous training for teachers in teaching and assessment of reading, large class management, and through introducing monitoring followed by constructive feedback.