Multiple-Case Studies of the Complexity of EFL Teachers’ Beliefs and Practices of Writing Assessment at a Preparatory Year Program at a Saudi University

Abstract

The relationship between teachers’ beliefs, practices, and contextual factors has been characterized as complex. Consequently, Complexity Theory (CT) has recently been instrumental in dissecting this nuanced relationship. However, its application to teachers’ beliefs regarding second language (L2) writing assessment remains an underexplored area in the literature. This qualitative study employed CT to explore the interplay of beliefs, practices, and contextual factors influencing teachers’ assessment of second language (L2) writing within a Saudi university’s Preparatory Year Program (PYP). The multiple-case study design involved five Saudi English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers, using interviews, observations, think-aloud protocols, and document analysis to uncover the nuanced interplay between belief systems and actual practices within the ecological systems of the macrosystem, exosystem, and microsystem. Findings indicated that EFL teachers held heterogeneous and interactive beliefs, encompassing beliefs concerning teaching and learning L2 writing, assessment purposes, methods, evaluation criteria, and assessment processes and tools. Teachers’ core beliefs about teaching and learning writing, shaped by their personal learning histories (microsystem), varied significantly among them and influenced their peripheral beliefs and practices. Tensions between beliefs and practices primarily emerged from exosystemic external factors, such as fixed assessment policies, curricular requirements, and teacher autonomy limitations. However, a harmony between beliefs and practices was noted where teachers exercised greater autonomy, especially in providing feedback. Factors from the macrosystem showed no direct influence on beliefs or practices. The study highlights the complexity of teachers’ realities and the need for development programs and policy reforms attuned to teachers’ beliefs and contextual challenges in Saudi higher education.