Challenges faced by undergraduates in oral presentations as a formal formative assessment in the ESL classroom

Abstract

Oral presentation is a commonly used formative assessment method in the ESL classroom at the undergraduate level. However, the challenges that the Sri Lankan undergraduates face in oral presentation assessments have not been adequately explored. This research gap limits our understanding of identifying the challenges that the undergraduates face in the oral presentation assessment process in the ESL classroom and prevents us from identifying possible solutions to overcome them. Hence, the purpose of this study is to investigate the challenges faced by the undergraduates during oral presentations as a formal formative assessment in the ESL classroom. A convenience sampling method was used to select fifteen undergraduate students studying Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) subjects from both state and non-state universities located in the Colombo district, Sri Lanka for the interviews. This sampling approach allowed for the inclusion of students who were readily accessible and willing to participate, providing insight into their experiences with ESL presentations. The results of the study revealed seven main challenges in two main categories. The first category which contained the challenges related to the assessment process reported four main challenges as not having transparency in the marking process, lack of fairness in marking, lack of receiving constructive feedback and lack of having a strict structure in the assessment process. The second category which included the challenges related to students' characteristics, reported another three challenges as overcoming fear and anxiety, poor language skills and lack of collaboration in group oral presentations. One reason why the undergraduates face such challenges may be because the lecturers as assessors, conduct oral presentations solely to fulfil the assessment, rather than to emphasize the learning process which is integral to the formative assessments. In conclusion, both the undergraduates and the lecturers should prioritize the learning process of formative oral presentation assessments to enhance positive outcomes by minimizing the challenges that the undergraduates face in such assessments.