Teachers' Decision-making in EFL, Classroom Assessments

Kyong-hyon Pyo 팬코리아영어교육학회(구 영남영어교육학회) 2004 영어교육연구 Vol.16 No.1

Teachers spend a great deal of time with assessment, and they see the task as inevitable in school systems for many reasons. This study examines what factors influence EFL college teachers in making decisions for their classroom assessment practices. Two English teachers at the college level were interviewed and their cases were analyzed for the following research themes: teacher beliefs and values, classroom realities, and classroom goals. First, the findings indicated that the important teacher beliefs that influence decision-making in assessment include a larger philosophy of teaching and learning, wanting students to succeed, engaging and motivating students to learn, and promoting student understanding and mastery. Next, along with inadequate home environments, teachers were under great pressure to account for limited effort/inappropriate attitudes and behaviors of students. and for curriculum demands at school. The main feature of the assessment practice is that teachers are in a constant process of reaching reasonable decisions on classroom assessments, as well as reaching a balance between their beliefs about education and learning and the realities of their classroom environments. This understanding will suggest positive actions that can improve assessment practices.

Comparison of University Students’ Perceptions of Interaction in English Classes on Two Online Platforms: Gather.town vs. Zoom

Kyong-Hyon Pyo 한국중원언어학회 2022 언어학연구 Vol.- No.65

This study is purported to compare university students’ perceptions of interaction in English classes on two synchronous online platforms: Gather.town, the metaverse vs. Zoom, non-metaverse. Moore’s three types of interaction in online education are utilized: learner-learner, learner-teacher, and learner-content. A total of 22 college students at an English pedagogy class participate in the survey; later, four individual students are interviewed. Non-parametric repeated-measures analysis utilized to see differences between the two platforms reveals the following findings. Firstly, students’ interaction on the metaverse between learners and learners and between learners and the teacher is significantly greater than its counterpart, not for learner-to-content interaction. Secondly, avatar use on the map-based classroom on the metaverse provides students with both multiple ways for interaction and an optimized environment for small group activity. In contrast, student-initiated interaction on Zoom is limited. Thirdly, the metaverse platform has easy ways of communication with the teacher. Finally, for learner-to-content interaction, difficulty in accessing and sharing class files on the metaverse causes inconveniences. Pedagogical implications are discussed for language teachers aspiring to adopt the metaverse for their future classes.

Students" Perceptions on English Teachers" Assessment Practices in University

Kyong-Hyon Pyo(표경현) 한국외국어교육학회 2008 Foreign languages education Vol.15 No.1

To date almost no research has been reported on language teachers" assessment practices in university, with the belief that those practices are up to teachers" individual decision-making as part of instruction. The present study investigated the long-ignored English teachers" assessment practices (testing and grading) through university student perception indices, found in the questionnaire and interviews, by looking at how students feel about their teacher"s current assessment practices. The research findings revealed that students were concerned about their teachers" low quality of tests, absence of communication channels for checking test results and grades with teachers, and undemocratic testing ambience. Implications for future research and assessment were suggested to look for possibilities of bringing in critical language testing (CLT) to the university classroom.

Does Flipped Learning at Fully Online Systems Enhance Self-directed Learning Attitude?

Kyong-Hyon Pyo 한국외국어교육학회 2021 Foreign languages education Vol.28 No.2

With traditional in-person classes canceled due to the pandemic, teachers moved classes online, adapting new teaching methods. With this background, this study is aimed at exploring if flipped learning conducted through fully online systems improves students’ self-directed learning attitudes. Comparing a conventional flipped learning model with asynchronous online before-class sessions to offline during-class ones, this study replaced offline during-class sessions with synchronous online ones and tried to see if a variant form of flipped learning will be effective in promoting students’ self-directed learning attitudes over time. Twenty-two English major students participated in a variant of flipped learning for eight weeks. A pre- and a post-test were administered using a survey questionnaire adapted from Lee and Pyo (2018)’s four characteristics of self-directed learning attitudes: autonomy, responsibility, creativity, and self-concept. The research findings are as follows. First, there was a significant increase in all four characteristics of self-directed learning attitudes in the fully online flipped classroom. Second, two themes, ‘greater work efficiency online’ and ‘a unique group mechanism online’ were found from open-ended questions, and explain well why the online-only flipped learning model is conducive to developing students’ self-directed learning attitudes.

Effects of Flipped Classroom on University Students’ Academic Self-Efficacy

Kyong-Hyon Pyo 한국중원언어학회 2018 언어학연구 Vol.0 No.49

The study aims to investigate effects of the flipped classroom on university students’ academic self-efficacy in English learning context. The research questions are: 1) What are effects of the flipped classroom on students’ academic self-efficacy?; and 2) What are students’ perceptions towards the flipped classroom? A total of 29 students participated in the quasi-experiment study. A student survey questionnaire was administered twice (before and after the flipped classroom), followed by in-depth interviews. Class observation notes were made. For data analysis, Wilcoxon matched pairs signed rank test, a non-parametric test for repeated t-test, was utilized. The results of this study revealed that the flipped classroom had a significant positive impact on students’ academic self-efficacy. The analysis of students’ narratives revealed three themes related to the flipped classroom: 1) enhanced academic self-efficacy, 2) positive meaning changes toward English class, and 3) reduced speaking anxiety. Overall, students’ perceptions showed that the flipped classroom provided them with supportive learning environment. Pedagogical and research implications are suggested.

Content Analysis on College English Teachers’ Experiences of Online Instruction During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Kyong-Hyon Pyo,Miran Yang,Kyeong-Hee Rha 한국중원언어학회 2021 언어학연구 Vol.- No.60

Research on students’ perceptions of different online classes has been actively conducted since the burst of COVID-19; however, a dearth of research has been done to look into teachers’ perspectives and perceptions of online classes during the pandemic. Therefore, this study is aimed at exploring six English teachers’ experiences, perspectives, and perceptions of three different online systems: synchronous, asynchronous, and a mixture of both systems. The survey questionnaire, in-depth interviews, and teaching journals were collected for analysis. Through a content analysis, transcribed data were coded and transcribed for making valid inferences. Results of data analysis showed that teachers initially started with negative perceptions toward online classes because of technical issues related with their digital literacy, and ended up with positive perceptions toward them. The teachers agreed on general benefits and drawbacks of online classes. Finally, teachers need to understand benefits of online classes for better instruction, and to recognize the drawbacks that impede adopting online classes, and to surpass them by complementing problems.

A Study of Enhancing Reliability of Classroom Self-Assessment in University

Kyong-Hyon Pyo 한국외국어교육학회 2015 Foreign languages education Vol.22 No.4

The usefulness of self-assessment for evaluation purposes has been controversial among language testers and teachers, pointing to the long-held psychometric concerns of its low-leveled reliability for assessment. This study aimed at exploring the possibility of enhancing the reliability of self-assessment used in a college English classroom (n=32) by diagnosing a cause of deteriorating the reliability quality of self-assessment and seeking measures to offset the negative factor for future use. In order to achieve the goals of the study, internal consistency reliabilities were obtained before and after an improvement was made in the self-assessment. Students’ feedback on the self-assessment was sought through a focus-group interview. Next, a multiple regression analysis was conducted to see if self-assessment can be a significant predictor in students’ final grades in the course. The independent variables used for this study were final exam, midterm exam, and five self-assessments. The results of the analyses are as follows: 1) from the focus-group interview on the 6th week of semester, a subjectivity problem of self-assessments was found and a new set of items in a quiz format were added for its modified version, 2) Cronbach’s α’s of self-assessments have drastically gone up from its original ones (.514-.546) to modified ones (.614-.850), and 3) four variables were included in the final model predicting students’ final grades: final exam, midterm exam, third and second self-assessments. Based on the findings, a new perspective on reliability issues in self-assessment was proposed.

Contribution of Learning Readiness to Group Discussion in University English Flipped Classroom

Kyong-Hyon Pyo 한국외국어교육학회 2019 Foreign languages education Vol.26 No.4

The study is aimed at investigating whether learning readiness contributes to university students’ group discussion in English in a flipped classroom. The research questions are: 1) Is there a change in learning readiness before and after flipped learning?; 2) Is there a change in students’ participation in group discussion before and after flipped learning?; and 3) Does learning readiness contribute to participation in group discussion? A total of 52 students participated in the study. Student survey questionnaires and quizzes were collected for data analysis. Wilcoxon matched pairs signed rank test, a non-parametric test for repeated measures t-test, and multiple regression analysis were utilized to answer the research questions. The statistical analyses produced the following results: 1) there was a significant change in students’ participation in learning readiness and group discussion; and 2) learning readiness and quizzes greatly contributed to group discussion. These findings corroborated the previous research that learning readiness is essential for self-directed learning in a successful flipped classroom. This suggests that teachers devise ways to help students engage in online activities for greater learning readiness.

Variables Influencing Learner Achievement and Satisfaction in a Flipped Classroom

Kyong-Hyon Pyo 한국중원언어학회 2017 언어학연구 Vol.0 No.43

This study was aimed at exploring variables influencing two main learning outcomes, learner achievement and satisfaction, in a flipped classroom at a university setting. The study took the learner and teacher factor into account. After literature review of relevant studies in this field, this study included independent variables, motivation, participation (before-class, while-class, and after-class participation), and teacher attitude as perceived by students collected from a survey questionnaire of 35 English-major students. Correlation and multiple-regression analyses were conducted to look into the relationships among the variables, followed by focus group interviews. The statistical analyses produced the following results: 1) learner achievement was accounted for by one variable, before-class participation; and 2) learner satisfaction was accounted by one variable, while-class participation. Further focus group interviews corroborated that students’ online participation prior to offline classes led to a greater achievement, and that students’ active participation during class contributed most to their satisfaction in the flipped classroom while student achievement and satisfaction had a strong correlation to each other. Pedagogical implications are discussed in the paper.

Different Needs between Students and Teachers in the Curriculum Development

Kyong-Hyon Pyo(표경현) 한국외국어교육학회 2006 Foreign languages education Vol.13 No.3

  Given the crucial role of teachers’ forming and modifying a curriculum in a school system, it was questioned if the results obtained from an analysis of learners’ needs could serve the ultimate goal of meeting students’ needs and desires in their language learning. For the grand research question, needs were sought from both parties (111 students and 5 teachers) through the survey and interview research design and elaborated for the potential differences and their underlying reasons. The research findings indicated that, first, needs for the current curriculum were not agreed upon between the two education agents. Students wanted to have more practical characteristics of a curriculum with an addition of courses improving communication skills and an increased interaction with foreign teachers. However, teachers were on a different agenda in the pursuit of a program renewal. The distinctive themes found from the interviews with teachers were in the following: 1) doubts over the worthiness of students’ needs, 2) tenacity to their specialty in the teaching, and 3) anxiety and pressure for changing needs in institution and society. It was concluded that teachers’ needs were better met with students’ needs being left outside the decision-making process, which has been a long-lived ideological problem at a university.