EFL Students’ and Teachers’ Perceptions of Google Forms as a Digital Formative Assessment Tool in Saudi Secondary Schools

Abstract

This study highlights students’ and teachers’ perceptions on using Google Forms as a formative assessment tool in EFL classrooms. The study implemented a mixed methods approach where a questionnaire was administered to students and interviews were carried out with English teachers in public secondary schools in two cities in Saudi Arabia. The questionnaire received 354 responses (32 males and 322 females) while in the structured interviews, 24 female English teachers provided their opinions on the advantages and disadvantages of integrating Google Forms into their classrooms. The purpose of this study is to explore students’ perceptions of online formative assessment via Google Forms in terms of perceived usefulness, perceived risk of cheating, and perceived self-efficacy. It also aims to analyze the positives and challenges faced by EFL teachers while using Google Forms as an online formative assessment tool. The results showed that both students and teachers believe that using Google Forms positively impacts students’ learning despite the risk of cheating and demonstrated several limitations with using Google Forms for teachers and students. However, English language teachers are recommended to engage all students in online formative assessment to monitor their progress over the course and design interventions to reduce cheating in online assessment. The present study helps increase the awareness of the positives and negatives of English online assessment in Saudi Arabia.