Formative Assessment of Writing: Practice and Perception Among English Teachers in Sweden

Abstract: The syllabus for English in Swedish upper secondary education states that teachers should help students become confident in expressing themselves through writing. Writing ability is an indication of knowing how to communicate and show knowledge effectively. An important part of the teaching profession is to help develop students’ abilities, which emphasizes teachers’ formative assessment practices. Research states the importance of formative assessment for writing development; however, previous studies showed several issues with teachers’ assessment practices. There was a discrepancy between teachers’ perceptions of formative assessment and their practices where teachers were positive toward using formative assessment, but their practices became summative. Furthermore, time constraints and a lack of institutional support caused problems with implementing formative assessment practices. Additionally, there was a lack of research on teachers’ formative assessment practices of writing and a lack of research conducted in a Swedish upper secondary EFL context. Therefore, this study investigated the topic of upper secondary English teachers’ formative writing assessment practices and their perceptions regarding the effectiveness of formative assessment for writing assignments and the associated challenges for implementation and level of institutional support. The study used a qualitative approach by conducting semi-structured interviews with three upper secondary English teachers in Sweden. The results showed that the practice could become summative even though teachers had a formative mindset. Furthermore, all teachers were positive about using formative assessment to develop students’ writing abilities. However, they expressed a partially shared belief that formative assessment was time-consuming, that there was a lack of time and institutional support to implement it, and that students were grade-focused. The findings imply that there is a risk that students do not develop the required communication skills stated in the syllabus.