NEGATIVE WASHBACK EFFECT OF THE ETHIOPIAN UNIVERSITY ENTRANCE ENGLISH EXAMINATION ON CLASSROOM TEACHING: THE CASE OF BEDENO AND FURDA SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN BEDENO WOREDA

Abstract

This study was intended to investigate the Negative washback effects of the Ethiopia University En-trance Examination on teaching learning process of English. Specifically, it examined the influence of the examination on the teachers teaching methodology, students learning strategies and contents of teaching materials. To attain the objective of the study, 148 students and 8 English Language teachers in Bedeno Secondary School and in Furda secondary school were used. The study used both quantita-tive data and qualitative data. Quantitative data gained from teachers’ questionnaires and students’ questionnaire. While, qualitative data obtained from teachers’ interview, and students’ focus group dis-cussion. The findings of the study showed that the content of the University entrance examinations profoundly influenced the teaching practice of teachers , the learning practice of learners and communicative contents of textbook. That means teachers’ teaching practice is constricted the contents of the curriculum taught and follow the University Entrance Examination format for their teaching and testing. Furthermore, it affects students’ learning activities and readiness in learning some components of the materials and experience in taking examination. As a result, students influenced to give more time for the work of previous examination questions rather than studying contents textbook. Their focus area was mostly on reading comprehension, grammar and vocabulary of the textbook. Based on the findings of the study, researcher recommended that National evaluation and assessment agency should have to set examination questions based on the contents of textbook equally. Teachers should have taught the components of the textbook and give equal emphasis for all the components of the textbook during their teaching-learning process and classroom assessment. The ministry of education should be amended to align the contents of the examination questions within the contents of the teaching materi-als.