Vietnamese EFL High School Teachers’ Self-assessment of their English Language Proficiency in Relation to the Official Assessment Test Results

Abstract

The current study explored how Vietnamese EFL high school teachers self-assessed their current English proficiency. It also compared teachers’ self-ratings with the results they obtained in the Project 2010 test, which was  used to assess English level of EFL teachers across Vietnam as part of the implementation of the National Foreign Language Project 2020. The data were drawn from 15-item online questionnaire with 94 teacher participants. The findings revealed that teachers perceived themselves as being more proficient in skills of writing and reading, compared to listening, spoken production (e.g., making presentations) and spoken interaction (e.g., making conversations). Most of them rated their current English proficiency level lower than the level they achieved in the Project 2020 test.  The findings offer information  about the language aspects that teachers were least proficient, which can be used to specify what support they actually desire from in-service training courses.  Also, as teachers are at the centre of the Project 2020, their perceptions of their own English proficiency provide insightful input to enhance the effectiveness of this educational reform.