A Study On Washback Effect Of Reading Comprehension Test In SHSEEE On Reading Teaching

Reading comprehension test has always been one of the key aspects of high school entrance examination,college entrance examination,and teachers’ teaching.The Curriculum Standards for Compulsory Education(2011)(hereinafter referred to as the Curriculum Standards)has made clear requirements on various language abilities students should achieve by graduation.Jinan Senior High School Entrance Examination English(hereinafter referred to as “SHSEEE”)is constantly practicing reform.This study explores the impact of reading comprehension test of Jinan SHSEEE on teachers’ teaching by taking the washback effect of a language test as a point of penetration in order to better implement and practice the Curriculum Standards.A large number of studies have been conducted by researchers at home and abroad on the washback effect of language tests.However,in China,the research on washback effect of English reading tests is mainly concentrated at the college and high school levels,and the research objects are mainly students rather than teachers.Because the high school entrance examination is different from area to area,one research result cannot be used as a reference for another area.Consequently,this study is of both theoretical and practical significance for junior high school English teaching in Jinan.This thesis puts forward three research questions:(1)Are there any differences between the reading skills required in the Curriculum Standards and the skills examined in SHSEEE? If yes,what are the differences?(2)In what aspects and to what extent does reading comprehension test in SHSEEE have washback effect on reading teaching in junior high schools?(3)Does reading comprehension test in SHSEEE have negative washback effect on junior high school English reading teaching? If yes,how to avoid it?125 teachers from junior high schools in Jinan and SHSEEE test papers in past five years were selected as the subjects of this study.Text-based analysis,questionnaire and interview were conducted among the teachers.After using different statistical methods to analyze the survey data with SPSS 26.0,this thesis drew the following conclusions:(1)The reading comprehension test in Jinan SHSEEE basically meet the requirements of the Curriculum Standards;(2)reading comprehension test in Jinan SHSEEE has strong washback effect on teachers’ teaching content,teaching methods,teaching ideas and teaching evaluation,and most of which are positive washback;(3)the test has negative washback effect on teachers’ choices of reading materials and the design of question patterns,it is possible to prevent the negative washback of reading comprehension test in SHSEEE by varying evaluation methods,researching and teaching question-answering skills,and providing a variety of reading materials.According to the results of the study and the washback effect theory,this thesis offers some instruction suggestions to junior high school English teachers on how to avoid the negative washback effect of the test during teaching,and also points out the limitations of the study and future directions for further research.