High-Stakes Test Preparation in Iran: The Interplay of Pedagogy, Test Content, and Context

Abstract

Previous work on high-stakes test preparation (henceforth TP) in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts is sparse and has mostly focused on teachers’ perceptions of test influence on the content and outcome of preparation courses linked to them. Certain studies, however, show that context-specific elements, such as stakeholders’ perceptions and social/political realities of the setting, equally influence TP. This implies that a high-stakes test used in different contexts could potentially lead to different TP practices. Adopting a qualitative approach, this study investigates the nature of language instruction in an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) preparation center in Iran, a context where high-stakes TP is widely practiced but whose nature is rarely studied. Research questions address the nature of TP practices and how it relates to the test content in this context, as well as the stakeholders’ perceptions of the test and their effects on the choice of instructional activities, content, methods, and strategies in TP courses. Data were gathered through questionnaires, interviews, observations, and focus-group interviews in ten-week-long IELTS preparation courses offered in a major TP center. A total of 56 test takers, 6 teachers, and 3 test center administrators participated in the study. The results, analyzed qualitatively and triangulated through cross-verification, point to the test center and its culture shaping the orientation of TP courses. Whereas the focus of TP is found to be on the test demands, instructional practices go beyond test-inspired activities, reflecting certain contextual factors such as students’ goals and needs, teachers’ experience, belief in second language (L2) learning, and stakeholders’ awareness of learners’ needs.