Assessing intermediate level students in Lebanon during school closure

Abstract

The process of teaching students has always been dependent on face-to-face instruction in brick and mortar institutions. Students and teachers meet at the same place and at the same time for learning. However, some incidents around the world could make a change in the medium of instruction. Lebanon’s political and economic volatility serves as an example of shifting educational practices as a corollary of myriad national problems affecting education. The massive popular uprising on October 17, 2019, the pandemic COVID-19, and the Beirut port-blast on August 4,2020 have had their toll on the educational sector both private and public as well as higher education and vocational education and training, This thesis dealt with the intermediate level because it is a critical one since it draws the future career path of the students in their education according to the 1997 educational ladder in which grade 9 is a point of departure either to vocational education and training track or to the academic one through transitioning students to formal higher education. During the pandemic COVID-19, teaching and learning in schools represented an era of ‘learning loss’ where little is known about what has happened in virtual teaching and online practices whose parameters are not yet well understood; a lacuna that incites speculations about emergency remote teaching during that period, particularly with regard to ensuring student learning via assessment. This research was conducted to discuss the ways teachers assessed learning among intermediate students during emergency remote teaching and learn how teachers reacted to the shift from face-to-face instruction to other makeshift modalities rather abruptly with a view on assessment. Qualitative research was adopted to uncover issues of teaching, learning, and assessments during emergency remote teaching. Research around this area has been gaining momentum since the pandemic often generating mixed results. The data in this research was gathered from documents analysis and interviews with intermediate level teachers. Document analysis was conducted on six different documents that include assessment policy in six schools drawn for the study. Semistructured interviews were conducted with teachers teaching different subjects in the intermediate level. Results obtained from fieldwork showed a variety of ways teachers used to assess students like conducting online quizzes, tests, reports, distributing the tests to parents through the school principals and then gathering it back for grading, reciting through online platforms, grading activities, presentations, multiple-choice questions. In addition, the majority of teachers interviewed have reported concerns during such situation such as cheating and not being able to fully assess student learning. Teachers have focused on the idea that assessments during closure were conducted yet with less credibility since students have many ways of swindling in the exams. The data gathered from assessments lacked accuracy; hence did not identify whether learning objectives were met. The thesis has several limitations. Due to lockdowns because of the pandemic, it was difficult to conduct focus group that would have added more data to the research. The number of participants involved in the study was limited. Some participants found difficulty in understanding some terms or in expressing their thoughts because the interview was conducted in English. Data retrieved from this research are not generalizable. In addition to that, no body language was taken into consideration since many participants refused to open the camera during the online interview. Despite these limitations, the research presented evidence-driven recommendations for schools, education policymakers, and those interested in providing sound education compatible with international trends and local realities during emergencies.