Teachers’ language assessment literacy: Exploring its construct and contextual factors

The importance of teachers’ language assessment literacy (LAL) has been widely acknowledged. However, due to its multifaceted, contextually situated, all-encompassing, and evolving nature, there remains a lack of clarity regarding what teachers’ LAL entails. Given that specific assessment contexts shape teachers’ LAL, there is a growing consensus on the need to develop context-specific LAL frameworks. This study targets university English teachers in China and adopts a mixed-methods approach, involving a large-scale survey (N = 1045) and follow-up interviews with 56 participants, to explore the construct of teachers’ LAL and its influencing factors. The survey asked teachers to rate the level of competence they believe they need across various areas of language assessment theory and practice. An exploratory factor analysis of the survey data yielded a 12-component framework of LAL, covering key assessment domains such as classroom-based assessment, standardized testing, and digital language assessment. The framework also reflects contextual characteristics specific to the Chinese university English-teaching environment. For EFL teachers in Chinese universities, the findings indicate that their LAL is shaped by both institutional constraints and personal beliefs and attitudes toward assessment—with institutional factors playing a mediating role. While teachers’ demographic variables had limited influence on their perceptions of LAL, their managerial responsibilities and research engagement exerted the most significant impact.