Practicing Authentic Assessment Strategies by Special Education Teachers in The Elementary Stage

Abstract

This study investigates the level to which special education teachers in Abha, Saudi Arabia, employ authentic assessment strategies and the challenges they face. The study followed the descriptive analytical approach by addressing the educational literature related to the subject of the study. The sample consisted of 260 male and female teachers, which is the number of teachers who participated in filling out the questionnaire. The researchers developed a questionnaire consisting of three parts, including 49 paragraphs. The first part related to the characteristics of the sample members, such as gender, academic qualification, and number of years of experience. The findings showed the presence of statistically significant differences in the use of strategies attributed to the gender variable in favour of females. On the other hand, the results revealed the absence of significant differences between the use of strategies and the training variable, the number of years of experience, and the academic qualification. The study concluded that using authentic assessment is useful in special education contexts and has benefits for both the teachers and the students.