Assessing History Assessment: Teacher and Student Perspectives on Standardized Testing and Instructional Reform in Bhutan
Keywords:
standardized assessment; History education; assessment literacy; student motivation; curriculum alignment; educational reform.Abstract
Standardized assessment remains a central mechanism for educational accountability, yet its capacity to represent authentic historical understanding continues to be debated. This study employed a convergent mixed-methods approach to examine teachers’ and students’ perceptions of standardized History assessment in Bhutan across five domains: fairness and curriculum alignment; motivation and historical understanding; use of assessment data for instructional improvement; challenges and reform needs; and teacher assessment literacy. Quantitative data were obtained from 677 Grade X students and 59 History teachers using structured questionnaires, while qualitative evidence was gathered from twelve students and six teachers through a focus-group discussion and semi-structured interviews. The student questionnaire contained 29 closed-ended items and the teacher questionnaire 20 closed-ended items, rated on a five-point Likert scale. The instruments were reviewed by three History experts, piloted with 30 Grade X students and 29 teachers, and demonstrated an overall Cronbach’s alpha of .80. Quantitative data were summarized using item-level means and standard deviations, and qualitative data were analysed thematically. Integration occurred during interpretation by comparing convergence, complementarity, and divergence between the two strands within the same five domains. Overall, respondents reported favourable perceptions of fairness, curriculum alignment, academic focus, feedback, and instructional use of assessment data. At the same time, participants perceived continuing concerns related to factual recall, limited inquiry opportunities, contextual inequities, examination pressure, and insufficient formal preparation in assessment literacy. These findings should be interpreted as stakeholder perceptions rather than direct evidence of psychometric validity or causal effects on learning. The study recommends a more balanced assessment system that retains common standards while expanding authentic historical inquiry, strengthening formative use of assessment evidence, and providing sustained professional learning in assessment literacy.
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