The Relationship Between Teaching Style and Assessment Methods Employed by Iraqi High School EFL Teachers

Subject Areas : Research in English Language Pedagogy

Rana Kadhim Rahoomi ¹ , Parviz Alavinia ²

1 -
2 -

Received: 2025-05-28 Accepted : 2025-08-28 Published : 2025-09-27

Keywords: AMS, Assessment methods, High school, Iraqi EFL teachers, Teaching styles, TSI,

Abstract :

The researchers in the current mixed-methods study sought to identify the relationship between the teaching styles of Iraqi high school EFL teachers and their application of assessment methods.  In doing so, the teachers’ perceptions regarding the relationship between these two constructs were also explored. To conduct the research, 120 Iraqi EFL teachers (both male and female) were initially selected from several high schools in Iraq. In the quantitative phase, data were collected by administering two questionnaires: Grasha’s (1996) Teaching Styles Inventory (TSI) and a researcher-developed Assessment Methods Scale (AMS). A follow-up interview was also performed to consolidate the findings gained in the quantitative phase. As the findings depicted, significant correlations existed between the whole TSI as well as its subcomponents, on the one hand, and assessment methods, on the other. However, only the expert teaching style was singled out as a strong predictor of teachers' assessment methods. Moreover, qualitative findings revealed five key themes from participants’ interviews concerning the relationship between teaching styles and assessment methods. These themes included interconnectedness, dependability, differentiation, novelty, innovation, the need for training, and the need for gaining feedback from learners. The findings offer valuable implications for teachers, teacher trainers, school administrators, and policymakers in the Iraqi high school context.

References:

Abdullah, G., Arifin, Saro’i, M., & Uhai, S. (2024). Assessing the influence of learning styles, istructional strategies, and assessment methods on student engagement in college-level science courses. International Education Trend Issues, 2(2), 142–150. https://doi.org/10.56442/ieti.v2i2.466
Alavinia, P., & Behyar, N. (2012). On the feasible linkages between Iranian academic EFL learners’ emotional intelligence level and their lexico-semantic errors in writing. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 2(6), 1174–1184.
Alavinia, P., & Ebrahimpour, S. (2012). On the correlation between emotional intelligence and learning styles: The case of Iranian academic EFL learners. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 2(6), 1291–1299.
Alavinia, P., Bonyadi, A., & Razavi, N. (2012). On the correlation between teachers’ emotional intelligence and learners’ motivation: The case of Iranian EFL Learners. Journal of Education and Practice, 3(13), 100–111.
Alavinia, P., & Sadeghi, T. (2013). The impact of differentiated task-based instruction via heeding learning styles on EFL learners' feasible proficiency gains. 3L: The Southeast Asian Journal of English Language Studies, 19(1), 75–91.
Alavinia, P., & Agha Alikhani, M. (2014). Willingness to communicate reappraised in the light of emotional intelligence and gender differences. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 98, 143–152.
Alavinia, P., & Viyani, A. (2018). Role of differentiated listening instruction via attending to learners’ multiple intelligences in enhancing listening performance of Iranian learners. International Journal of English Language and Translation Studies, 6(3), 12–21.
Amini, M., Samani, S., & Lotfi, F. (2012). Reviewing Grasha teaching methods among faculty members of Shiraz Medical School. Research and Development in Medical Education, 1(2), 37–43. https://doi.org/10.5681/rdme.2012.009
Baleghizadeh, S., & Shakouri, M. (2019). Investigating the relationship between teaching styles and emotional intelligence among Iranian English instructors. Issues in Language Teaching, 8(1), 225–248. https://doi.org/10.22054/ilt.2020.28311.258
Baradaran, A. (2016). The Relationship between teaching styles and autonomy among Iranian female EFL teachers, teaching at advanced levels. English Language Teaching, 9(3), 223–234. https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v9n3p223
Brew, R. (2002). Kolb’s learning style instrument: Sensitive to gender. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 62, 373–90. https://doi.org/10.1177/0013164402062002011
Cooper, T. S. (2001). Foreign language teaching styles and personality. Foreign Language Annals, 34(4), 301–317. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-9720.2001.tb02062.x
Díaz Larenas, C. H., Rodríguez Moran, A. V., & Poblete Rivera, K. J. (2011). Comparing teaching styles and personality types of EFL instructors in the public and private sectors. Profile Issues in Teachers Professional Development, 13(1), 111–127.
Dilekli, Y., & Tezci, E. (2016). The relationship among teachers’ classroom practices for teaching thinking skills, teachers’ self-efficacy towards teaching thinking skills and teachers’ teaching styles. Thinking Skills and Creativity 21(7), 144–151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2016.06.001
Dunn, R., & Dunn, K. (1993a). Teaching elementary students through their individual learning styles: Practical approaches for grades 3-6. Allyn & Bacon.
Dunn, R., & Dunn, K. (1993b). Teaching secondary students through their individual learning styles: Practical approaches for grades 7-12. Allyn & Bacon.
Fadaee, E., Marzban, A., & Najafi Karimi, Sh. (2021). Teacher autonomy and teaching styles: A gender-comparative study of Iranian EFL academics. Iranian Journal of English for Academic Purposes, 10(3), 1–15.
Giraldo, F. (2018). Language assessment literacy: Implications for language teachers. Profile: Issues in Teachers’ Professional Development, 20(1), 179–195. https://doi.org/10.15446/profile.v20n1.62089.
Grasha, A. F. (1996). Teaching with styles: A practical guide to enhance learning by understanding learning and teaching styles. Alliance Publisher.
Grasha, A. F. (2007). Teaching styles inventory maintained by the University of Maryland. Retrieved from http://polaris.umuc.edu/~rouellet/learning/tsi.htm
Heidari, S., Sadeghi-Firoozabadi, V., Bagheri, M., Heidari, M., & Sze, N. N. (2021). Evaluating differences in cognitive functions and personality traits among air traffic controllers with and without error history. Safety Science, 139, 105208, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2021.105208
Hosseini Fatemi, A., & Raufi, R. (2014). Burnout and teaching style among Iranian English language educators in public schools and private institutes: a case-comparison study. International Journal of Research Studies in Language Learning, 1, 1–7. https://doi.org/10.5861/ijrsll.2014.557
Karimvand, P. N. (2011). The nexus between Iranian EFL teachers’ self-efficacy, teaching experience and gender. English Language Teaching, 4(3), 171–183. https://doi.org/10.5539/elt.v4n3p171
Kartal, G., & Basol, H. Ç. (2019). Generic teacher competencies and the English language teacher education program in Turkey. Novitas-ROYAL (Research on Youth and Language), 13(2), 133–154.
Kassaian, Z., & Ayatollahi, M. A. (2010). Teaching styles and optimal guidance in English language major. Quarterly Journal of Research and Planning in Higher Education, 55, 131–152.
Kothari, T. P., & Pingle, S. S. (2015). Establishing the relationship between marketing specialization and personality traits among management students. Paradigm, 19(2), 170–183. https://doi.org/10.1177/0971890715609856
Lowman, J. (1995). Mastering the techniques of teaching. Jossey-Bass.
Mazaheri, S., & Ayatollahi, M. A. (2019). Relationship between Iranian EFL teachers' brain dominance, teaching experience and their teaching style. International Journal of Foreign Language Teaching and Research, 7(25), 115–126.
Mazloom, S., & Hussain, M. A. (2020). Identification of teaching styles in English language Classrooms at Secondary Level. Bulletin of Education and Research, 42(3), 257–273.
Megasari, E., Arafat, Y., & Yan, A. (2021, July). The influence of teaching style and teacher work motivation on the learning outcomes of junior high school students in Beringin Island sub-district. In International Conference on Education Universitas PGRI Palembang (INCoEPP 2021) (pp. 958–963). Atlantis Press. https://doi.org/10.2991/assehr.k.210716.191
Moradi, M. R., & Alavinia, P. (2020). Learner-centered education in the Iranian EFL context: A glance through the impediments. Teaching English as a Second Language Quarterly, 38(4), 95–121. https://doi.org/10.22099/jtls.2020.36293.2780
Moradi, M. R., & Alavinia, P. (2025). The amelioration of learner‐centered instruction through training: The case of Iranian EFL teachers. Journal of Language Horizons, 9(2), 193–217. https://doi.org/10.22051/lghor.2025.48509.1976
Quirk, M. (1994). How to teach and learn in medical school: A learner-centered approach. Charles C Thomas Pub Ltd.
Rahimi, M., & Asadollahi, F. (2012a). On the relationship between Iranian EFL teachers’ classroom management orientations and teaching style. Procedia–Social and Behavioral Sciences 31, 49–55, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.12.015
Rahimi, M., & Asadollahi, F. (2012b). Teaching styles of Iranian EFL teachers: do gender, age, and experience make a difference? International Journal of English Linguistics, 2, 157–164. https://doi.org/10.5539/ijel.v2n2p157
Rosalia, H. (2017). The analysis of English teachers’ teaching styles and their effects on students’ interest. Doctorate Thesis. University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur.
Sabado, R. R., & Allan, O. (2019). Junior and senior technical vocational education teachers’ performance and teaching styles: a comparison. International Journal of Latest Research in Humanities and Social Science, 2(6), 32–42.
Scarino, A. (2013). Language assessment literacy as self-awareness: Understanding the role of interpretation in assessment and in teacher learning. Language Testing, 30(3), 309–327. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265532213480128
Schweisfurth, M. (2013). Learner-centered education in international perspective: Whose pedagogy for whose development? Rutledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203817438
Sheila, N. A., Zhu, Ch., Kintu, M. J., Kataike, J. (2021). Assessing higher education institutional stakeholders' perceptions and needs for community engagement: An empirical evidence from Uganda. Heliyon, 7(4), e06612. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e06612
Sim, S. H., & Mohd Matore, M. E. E. (2022). The relationship of Grasha–Riechmann teaching styles with teaching experience of national-type Chinese primary schools mathematics teachers. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 1028145. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1028145.
Usop, A. M., Askandar, D. K., Langguyuan-Kadtong, M., & Usop, D. A. S. O. (2013). Work performance and job satisfaction among teachers. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 3(5), 245–252.
Woods, D. R. (1995). Teaching and learning: What can research tell us? Some considerations for both students and instructors. Journal of College of Science Teaching, 25, 229–232.
Yamtim, V., & Wongwanich, S. (2014). A study of classroom assessment literacy of primary school teachers. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 116, 2998–3004. https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.sbspro.2014.01.696
Yoshida, F., Conti, G. J., Yamauchi, T., & Kawanishi, M. (2024). A teaching styles typology of practicing teachers. Journal of Education and Learning, 13(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.5539/jel.v13n1p1
Zhang, L.-F. (2007). Teaching styles and occupational stress among Chinese University faculty members. Educational Psychology, 27(6), 823–841. https://doi.org/10.1080/01443410701366043