EXAMINING THE WASHBACK EFFECT OF BISE LAHORE AND FBISE ENGLISH EXAMINATIONS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE AMONG PAKISTANI INTERMEDIATE STUDENTS

Abstract

The current research paper explores the washback effects of BISE Lahore and FBISE English tests on the formation of communicative competence among the students of Pakistani Intermediate (HSSC). The primary aim is to examine the effect of high-stakes exams on instructional methods, learning behavior of the students and acquisition of skills in grammar, reading, writing, listening and speaking. This research is based on the washback theory and the communicative competence framework of Canale and Swain, which focus on the correspondence of assessment, pedagogy, and learning outcomes. The research design that was used was qualitative-cum-quantitative. The methods used to gather data were classroom observations, teacher and student questionnaires, semi-structured interviews and analysis of examination papers. Purposive sampling was used to select 60 teachers and 200 students in both public and private colleges of BISE Lahore and FBISE. Descriptive statistics (mean, frequency, and percentage) was used to analyze quantitative data, and thematic analysis was used to analyze qualitative data in order to determine the patterns of teaching and learning behaviors among exam-oriented students. Results show that the two boards yield good Washback with focus being put on grammar, reading comprehension and writing as opposed to oral and interactive communication. The student learning is dominated by memorization and model-answer practices which restrict the holistic communicative competence. Suggestions involve incorporating oral and listening activities in examinations, training of teachers on communicative pedagogy, curriculum alignment and application of interactive classroom techniques to balance development of linguistic skills.