Constructing a Digital English Teaching and Assessment Framework in Primary and Secondary Schools: A Core Competency Perspective ()
1. Introduction
In 2020, the General Plan for Deepening the Reform of Education Evaluation in the New Era explicitly emphasized the necessity of harnessing information technology to enhance the scientific, professional, and objective nature of educational assessment [1]. This policy framework highlighted the pivotal role of data and digital technologies in transforming educational evaluation, thereby providing a strategic roadmap for the digital transformation of education in the contemporary era. Against this backdrop, the digitalization of education has emerged as a transformative force, offering innovative approaches and pathways for the evaluation of English language teaching in primary and secondary schools.
In May 2023, the Action Plan for Deepening Curriculum and Teaching Reform in Basic Education built upon this foundation by further advocating for core competency-oriented teaching evaluation. It underscored the importance of leveraging evaluation as a tool for guidance, diagnosis, and feedback [2]. In light of these developments, exploring digital evaluation models and constructing a systematic evaluation framework for English language teaching in primary and secondary schools—centered on core competencies—has become crucial. Such efforts are essential for fostering the development of students’ core competencies and ensuring that educational evaluation aligns with the evolving demands of the digital age.
2. Core Competencies in English Teaching and Assessment
for Primary and Secondary Schools
The revised curriculum standards have introduced the concept of core competencies in the English language discipline, marking a significant shift in educational philosophy. This innovation has encouraged English teachers in primary and secondary schools to adopt a core competency-focused approach in their teaching evaluation practices. As a result, educators are increasingly exploring the content and methods of English teaching evaluation through this new lens, emphasizing the integration of core competencies into the evaluation process.
In addressing the challenges and limitations of current English teaching evaluation practices, researchers have proposed a range of diversified strategies and methods. These recommendations focus on multiple dimensions of evaluation, including goals, subjects, methods, standards, and content. By doing so, they aim to enhance the comprehensiveness and effectiveness of the evaluation process.
The burgeoning research on core competency-oriented teaching evaluation has significantly enriched the field. It has facilitated the integration of teaching, learning, and evaluation within classroom instruction, thereby fostering a cohesive and high-quality educational experience. This shift has not only driven the high-quality development of English teaching in primary and secondary schools but has also laid a solid foundation for the holistic development of students’ core competencies.
The promulgation of the new curriculum standards has catalyzed a wave of research initiatives aimed at reforming English language assessment to align with core competencies. This movement has propelled the diversification of teaching evaluation methods, moving beyond traditional assessments to incorporate a broader range of evaluative practices. Assessment approaches including portfolio assessment [3], performance assessment [4], and value-added assessment [5] are all geared towards fostering the core competencies in English among students. These approaches are designed to augment the efficacy of learning outcomes and elevate the quality of instructional practices.
As the core competency framework continues to evolve, student academic evaluation based on curriculum standards has garnered significant attention. Among these approaches, performance assessment—which centers on student learning and targets the development of higher-order thinking skills—has emerged as particularly salient [6]. Scholars have conducted extensive research on performance assessment, elucidating its potential to promote students’ core competencies in English. Building on this foundation, a core competency-oriented evaluation framework that integrates both formative and summative assessment practices has been proposed [7]. By focusing on classroom-based and examination-based assessments, Wang explores the development of a novel academic evaluation mechanism that is intrinsically aligned with core competency goals. This work underscores the importance of creating cohesive evaluation systems that support student growth and align with contemporary educational objectives.
3. Digitalized English Teaching and Assessment under the
Core Competency Framework
In the context of digitalized educational environments, teachers are increasingly leveraging data collection tools and advanced analytical models to visualize student performance data. This enables more precise and targeted academic evaluations, allowing educators to better understand and support student learning. However, despite these technological advancements, research on digitalized teaching evaluation remains underexplored compared to traditional evaluation methods.
Current studies primarily focus on identifying the foundational principles of classroom evaluation in English instruction and exploring evaluation models that enhance purposeful and efficient learning in digital contexts. While these efforts are valuable, they predominantly center on the data-driven aspects of formative evaluation, with less emphasis on the broader theoretical and practical dimensions of digitalized evaluation.
To advance the field, there is a critical need for deeper theoretical and empirical investigations into digitalized teaching evaluation. Such research should aim to construct a more scientific, systematic, and efficient evaluation framework one that integrates digital technologies seamlessly into the evaluation process. This framework should not only support the comprehensive development of students’ core competencies but also align with the evolving demands of modern education. Ultimately, a robust digitalized evaluation system can provide actionable insights for teachers, enhance student learning outcomes, and foster a more cohesive and effective educational experience.
4. Principles of Digitalized English Teaching and Assessment
Guided by Core Competencies
4.1. Differentiated Evaluation Criteria
Traditional evaluation standards in education have predominantly focused on selection and identification, often overlooking the comprehensive development of students and their individual differences. Such an approach tends to neglect the diverse learning needs, abilities, and styles of students, thereby limiting the potential for personalized growth.
In contrast, the new curriculum standards advocate for a more inclusive and student-centered evaluation paradigm. These standards emphasize the importance of aligning evaluation practices with the diverse educational goals across different stages of primary and secondary education. They recognize that students exhibit a wide range of learning abilities and styles and that these differences should be acknowledged and accommodated in the evaluation process.
To achieve this, evaluation criteria should be specifically tailored to address the unique levels, characteristics, and developmental needs of individual students. Within the same teaching activity, evaluation criteria can be stratified and refined to target different proficiency levels. For instance, for students with weaker English foundations, evaluation can emphasize the mastery of basic knowledge and the stimulation of learning interest. Conversely, for more advanced students, evaluation can focus on higher-order skills such as language application, critical thinking, and creativity.
By implementing differentiated evaluation criteria, educators can effectively motivate students at various proficiency levels, thereby fostering both their comprehensive development and individual growth. This approach not only enhances student engagement but also supports the overarching goals of the core competency framework, which seeks to cultivate well-rounded and adaptable learners.
4.2. Diversification of Evaluation Agents
The evaluation agent is the principal executor of teaching evaluation, tasked with providing a comprehensive assessment of students’ learning processes and outcomes. Under the core competency framework, the traditional reliance on a singular evaluation agent—typically the teacher—should be reimagined to embrace a more inclusive and dynamic model [8]. Specifically, the evaluation process should extend beyond teacher-led assessments to incorporate student self-assessment, peer evaluation, and even parental involvement [9]. This multi-faceted approach fosters a holistic, multi-tiered evaluation mechanism that captures a broader range of perspectives and insights.
By diversifying the evaluation agents, teachers can simultaneously ignite students’ intrinsic motivation to learn and provide teachers with richer, more immediate feedback on instructional effectiveness. Self-assessment empowers students to reflect on their progress, while peer evaluation enhances collaborative learning and critical thinking. Parental involvement, meanwhile, bridges the gap between home and school, ensuring that learning is supported in multiple contexts. Collectively, these diverse evaluation agents enable teachers to pinpoint areas for instructional improvement swiftly and accurately, thereby enhancing teaching efficiency and supporting the comprehensive development of students.
4.3. Comprehensive Evaluation Content
In primary and secondary English education, traditional evaluation methods have predominantly centered on end-of-term exam scores as the exclusive metric for assessing students’ integrated language proficiency. This narrow focus is notably problematic, as it tends to provide an incomplete and potentially misleading snapshot of students’ language development. By reducing evaluation to a single dimension, this approach risks overlooking the incremental progress students make throughout the learning process and may ultimately dampen their enthusiasm for learning.
The English Curriculum Standards for Compulsory Education (2022 Edition) have recently clarified the overarching educational goals of “who we are cultivating, how we are cultivating them, and for whom we are cultivating them [10].” These goals emphasize the need to focus on the core competencies of Chinese students, fostering the values, character traits, and skills necessary for future success [10]. In this context, evaluating solely on the basis of language proficiency is insufficient to meet the evolving demands of society. Instead, the focus must shift toward cultivating students’ core competencies, which encompass a broader range of abilities beyond language ability, including cultural awareness, critical thinking and learning ability [10]. Given this broader educational vision, English teaching evaluation should extend beyond the assessment of language knowledge and skills. It should comprehensively address students’ performance across multiple dimensions, including cultural understanding, intercultural communication, critical thinking, creative thinking, and learning strategies. By adopting a more holistic evaluation framework, educators can more accurately capture the multifaceted nature of students’ development and better align teaching practices with the overarching goals of fostering well-rounded, adaptable individuals capable of thriving in a globalized world.
4.4. Diversification of Evaluation Methods
The English Curriculum Standards for Compulsory Education (2022 Edition) explicitly proposes that teaching evaluation should employ a variety of methods and tools, reflecting the characteristics of multiple channels, perspectives, levels, and approaches [10]. To this end, evaluation practices should integrate formative and summative assessments, as well as qualitative and quantitative measures. This diversified approach ensures that evaluation is not a singular event but a continuous process embedded throughout the teaching and learning of English courses. By doing so, evaluation results can be effectively utilized to refine instructional strategies and enhance student learning outcomes, thereby achieving a seamless integration of teaching, learning, and evaluation [10]. The widespread adoption of digital technologies has significantly expanded the toolkit available for teaching evaluation. These technologies enable teachers to monitor students’ learning progress with greater precision and provide real-time feedback. Moreover, digital platforms can engage students more actively in the evaluation process, fostering a sense of ownership and responsibility for their learning. By leveraging these tools, evaluation can become more dynamic, interactive, and responsive to individual learning needs. This not only supports the comprehensive development of students’ core competencies but also aligns with the broader educational goals of cultivating self-directed and adaptable learners.
4.5. Dynamic Nature of the Evaluation Process
Teaching evaluation should be seamlessly integrated into every facet of the instructional process, from pre-class diagnostic assessments that identify initial competencies, through formative evaluations during class that track ongoing progress, to summative assessments post-class that evaluate overall achievement [10]. This holistic approach not only examines students’ developmental levels and potential but also closely monitors their growth trajectories and areas of strength throughout the learning process. The evaluation process is dynamic and continuous, aimed at uncovering and nurturing students’ latent abilities, rather than merely providing a static snapshot of their performance.
Teachers must adopt a developmental perspective, focusing on the evolving needs and progress of each student. By implementing dynamic, process-oriented evaluations, educators can more accurately gauge students’ learning states and promptly adjust instructional strategies to better meet individual needs. This approach allows teachers to provide timely support, helping students achieve their learning goals while also enhancing their own pedagogical expertise. Ultimately, dynamic evaluation serves as a powerful tool for fostering student growth and improving instructional quality.
5. Constructing a Digitalized English Teaching and
Assessment Framework Guided by Core Competencies
The English curriculum standards emphasize that teaching evaluation should be fundamentally oriented toward the comprehensive development of students’ core competencies. In alignment with these standards, the development of a digitalized English teaching evaluation system guided by core competencies represents a pivotal strategy to enhance teaching quality and foster holistic student development. This system is designed to prioritize core competencies, promote the diversification of evaluation agents and methods, and fully harness digital technology to empower the evaluation process. By integrating these elements, the system aims to achieve a comprehensive, scientific, and dynamic approach to teaching evaluation. This not only provides actionable insights for continuous instructional improvement but also serves as foundational support for the holistic development of students.
5.1. Competency-Oriented Approach: The Cornerstone of
Digitalized Teaching Evaluation
The development of core competencies is central to the construction of digitalized teaching evaluation systems. These competencies delineate the values, character traits, and essential skills that students acquire through English language courses, which are aligned with the demands of both personal lifelong development and societal progress [10]. In primary and secondary English education, the practicality of core competency goals is enhanced by breaking them down into specific objectives related to language ability, cultural awareness, critical thinking, and learning ability.
Evaluation criteria are further refined to match the characteristics of different educational stages, ensuring a more precise assessment of students’ English learning outcomes. For example, language ability is dissected into multiple dimensions of behavioral performance, such as perception and accumulation, acquisition and construction, and expression and communication [10]. This detailed approach enables a more accurate evaluation of students’ proficiency in English, thereby ensuring that teaching and assessment practices are closely aligned with the overarching goals of core competencies.
5.2. Diversified Evaluation: The Foundation of Digitalized
Teaching Evaluation
Diversified evaluation agents and methods are fundamental to the construction of digitalized teaching evaluation systems. Teachers, as the primary evaluators, play a central role in implementing evaluations aimed at fostering students’ core competencies. These evaluations should extend beyond academic performance and learning attitudes to encompass students’ learning abilities, cognitive development, cultural awareness, and innovative thinking. Through continuous monitoring and assessment, teachers can gain a comprehensive understanding of students’ learning dynamics, providing a solid basis for targeted instruction.
Students, as active participants in the evaluation process, benefit significantly from self-assessment, which enables them to reflect on their learning processes, identify areas for improvement, and develop personalized strategies for growth. Peer evaluation, in turn, promotes communication and collaboration among students, enhancing their teamwork and communication skills. By engaging in self- and peer-assessment, students not only gain confidence in expressing themselves but also reinforce their subject-specific competencies through reflection and interaction. These evaluation methods also serve as valuable diagnostic tools for teachers, helping them pinpoint students’ learning needs and adjust instructional content and pacing to improve teaching quality and support students’ holistic development.
In addition to involving students, parental participation is crucial. By involving parents in the evaluation process, schools can provide a more comprehensive picture of students’ learning, thereby strengthening home-school communication and fostering a supportive educational environment.
Furthermore, the diversification of evaluation methods is essential. Beyond traditional assignments, unit tests, and final exams, teachers can leverage online testing platforms, learning management systems, and multimedia presentations to conduct classroom evaluations. Online testing platforms can be used for diagnostic assessments of students’ language knowledge, identifying knowledge gaps and providing timely feedback to help students address weaknesses. Learning management systems enable teachers to track students’ progress, learning behaviors, and outcomes, offering a basis for formative evaluation. Additionally, by leveraging interactive learning platforms to guide students through anonymous self-assessment and peer assessment, personal biases can be minimized, thereby enhancing the fairness and objectivity of the evaluation process. The integration of multidimensional data from these digital platforms allows for a holistic and objective evaluation of student development, ensuring that assessments reflect a comprehensive understanding of each student’s learning trajectory.
5.3. Digital Empowerment: The Enabler of Digitalized
Teaching Evaluation
Digital technology serves as the backbone of digitalized teaching evaluation systems, providing essential support for the construction and implementation of these systems. Online testing platforms such as Questionnaire Star and interactive learning platforms facilitate the design and deployment of both diagnostic and summative assessments. These platforms offer a diverse range of question types and provide immediate feedback on test results, thereby significantly enhancing the timeliness and responsiveness of the evaluation process. Learning management systems (LMS) can meticulously track students’ learning behaviors, classroom interactions, and homework completion status. These detailed records offer teachers crucial insights into students’ learning states, contributing to the development of comprehensive learner profiles. By leveraging these systems, teachers can gain a deeper understanding of individual learning trajectories and tailor their instructional strategies accordingly.
Moreover, online presentation platforms capture students’ language use and overall performance in real-world contexts. This not only promotes the development of students’ practical skills but also provides a more intuitive basis for evaluation. Real-time documentation of students’ language application and integrated performance offers tangible evidence of their competencies, supporting a more holistic assessment approach. Big data analytics further amplify the effectiveness of digitalized evaluation by processing and analyzing large volumes of student data. These analyses generate intuitive visual reports that enable teachers to quickly and accurately grasp students’ learning progress, identify existing issues, and predict potential developmental trends. Armed with these insights, teachers can make timely adjustments to their teaching strategies and optimize instructional design to better support students’ holistic development.
Through this digitalized evaluation process, the objectivity and scientific nature of evaluation are significantly enhanced. It also provides robust support for personalized teaching and targeted tutoring, ultimately fostering a more effective and adaptive learning environment.
6. Implementing Digitalized English Teaching and
Assessment Guided by Core Competencies
To facilitate the effective implementation of digitalized English teaching evaluation in primary and secondary schools guided by core competencies, it is imperative to undertake a rigorous needs analysis to precisely identify the practical requirements of teachers. By employing a blended model that combines online and offline approaches, these systematic and customized training resources could be provided for primary and secondary school teachers. Additionally, teachers are encouraged to apply these resources in their actual teaching practices and continuously monitor their implementation and application.
Teachers could establish competency-oriented teaching objectives and refine evaluation metrics before the class. Teaching objectives are the cornerstone of effective evaluation, providing both the foundation and the framework for assessing student progress. Under the core competency framework, English teaching objectives should be explicitly aligned with the development of students’ language proficiency, cultural awareness, critical thinking, and learning capabilities. These objectives serve as the guiding principles for constructing comprehensive and meaningful evaluation metrics. When evaluating students’ writing, teachers should move beyond the mere correctness of grammar and vocabulary to assess the clarity and coherence of their ideas. Specifically, teachers should examine whether students can effectively articulate their viewpoints using the language they have learned, whether their arguments are logically structured, and whether they demonstrate creativity in their expression. This holistic approach to evaluation enables a more nuanced understanding of students’ learning outcomes, allowing educators to better support the development of core competencies and prepare students for the demands of the future.
At the same time, teachers conduct diagnostic evaluations via digital platforms before class. Before class begins, teachers can utilize Questionnaire Star、Rain Classroom and interactive learning platforms digital platforms to conduct diagnostic evaluations [11], which serve as a critical first step in understanding students’ learning profiles. These platforms offer a variety of diagnostic tools, such as online surveys and tests, which provide valuable insights into students’ prior knowledge, learning interests, and areas of difficulty. Specifically, online surveys can be used to gather detailed information on students’ existing knowledge base in English, their specific interests, and any points of confusion they may have. Meanwhile, online tests enable teachers to assess students’ mastery of the material covered in the previous unit. Together, these tools provide a comprehensive snapshot of students’ current learning status. Armed with the data from these diagnostic evaluations, teachers can precisely identify students’ starting points and learning needs. This information empowers teachers to make informed decisions about adjusting the content, methods, and pacing of instruction to better align with students’ actual needs. By doing so, teachers can ensure that their instruction is not only more targeted but also more responsive to individual learners, ultimately enhancing the effectiveness of their teaching and supporting more equitable learning outcomes.
Teachers implement formative evaluation based on dynamic data during classroom instruction. In the classroom, teachers employ the digital platform Rain Classroom to create student growth portfolios [12]. Through a collaborative process, teachers and students jointly define the learning objectives and documentation protocols for these portfolios, as well as delineate the corresponding evaluation criteria. Utilizing the dynamic data recorded by the platform, teachers conduct formative assessments while simultaneously guiding students in engaging in self-assessment and peer-assessment activities. This multifaceted approach not only facilitates comprehensive monitoring of students’ learning trajectories but also enhances the development of students’ self-regulated learning abilities and critical thinking skills through a diversified assessment framework. Teachers can also implement formative evaluation by leveraging dynamic data from Smart Classroom platforms. These digital platforms enable real-time monitoring of students’ learning behaviors and outcomes. Specifically, learning management systems (LMS) provide detailed insights into students’ classroom interactions, such as the frequency of participation, accuracy of responses, and time taken to complete tasks [13]. Meanwhile, online learning platforms offer visibility into how students engage with various learning resources.
By analyzing these data, teachers gain a comprehensive understanding of students’ learning trajectories, progress, and effectiveness. This information allows teachers to conduct targeted formative evaluations and provide timely, actionable feedback and guidance. For instance, teachers can offer voice or video instructions online, provide tiered guidance based on the completion of learning tasks, and deliver personalized advice based on the utilization of resources. These supports could help students to optimize their learning strategies and enhance their overall learning outcomes.
Teachers should conduct summative evaluations that center on students’ integrated competencies, offering a comprehensive review of their learning outcomes. Guided by the core competency framework, these evaluations should focus on students’ overall development rather than being confined to their language knowledge. Educators can leverage intelligent classroom platforms to design thematic and project-based learning tasks or assignments that require students to integrate language knowledge, cultural awareness, and critical thinking skills. This integrative approach enables educators to assess students’ progress and growth from multiple dimensions, thereby providing a comprehensive evaluation of their language proficiency and integrated competencies.
In addition, teachers facilitate student self-assessment and peer assessment based on learning behaviors and outcomes documented within the learning platform. To maximize the efficacy of these assessments, teachers explicitly delineate evaluation criteria and provide comprehensive assessment rubrics. Students are guided to conduct qualitative analyses using data from the platform, including homework completion rates, test scores, and classroom participation levels. Students are also encouraged to share their assessment results and learning reflections. This process enables students to critically reflect on their learning deficiencies. Meanwhile, teachers actively engage with students’ self-assessments and peer feedback, identify areas for improvement, and offer personalized learning recommendations. By doing so, teachers assist students in optimizing and refining their learning strategies, thereby providing clear pathways for future learning enhancements.
7. Conclusions
The development of a digitalized English teaching evaluation system guided by core competencies offers a transformative approach to education. It equips teachers with robust, data-driven insights to inform instructional decisions while providing students with tailored learning experiences that support their individual needs [14]. By fostering the comprehensive development of core competencies, this system not only enhances students’ language proficiency but also cultivates essential skills for lifelong learning. Ultimately, it lays a solid foundation for students’ future academic and personal success.
However, the adoption of digital evaluation tools by teachers, especially in schools with limited access to technology, presents several challenges. To address these challenges, a multifaceted strategy is necessary. First, teacher training and professional development are foundational. Comprehensive training programs, coupled with ongoing support, can significantly enhance teachers’ digital literacy, equipping them with the skills needed to effectively utilize these tools. This not only builds confidence in their ability to implement digital evaluations but also fosters a positive attitude toward technological integration. Second, leveraging existing resources is crucial for practical implementation. In schools with limited access to advanced technology, teachers can utilize basic digital devices such as smartphones or tablets to access evaluation systems. This approach maximizes the potential of available technology, ensuring that digital evaluation tools remain accessible even in less-resourced settings. Lastly, collaborative support from peers and administrative staff plays a vital role in creating a supportive environment. By fostering a culture of collaboration, teachers can experiment with digital evaluation tools; share best practices, and receive guidance from colleagues and school leaders. This collaborative framework not only eases the transition to digital evaluation but also promotes continuous improvement and innovation in teaching practices.
Effectively addressing these challenges and successfully integrating digitalized English teaching evaluation system into educational practices requires ongoing exploration and innovation from English teachers. As educational landscapes continue to evolve, teachers are encouraged actively engage in the development and refinement of digital evaluation practices. This proactive stance ensures that evaluation methods remain agile and responsive to the dynamic demands of educational reform and digital transformation. By doing so, teachers can maximize the effectiveness of these tools in supporting student growth, ultimately enhancing the overall quality of teaching and learning.
Funding Statement
Research on Digital Transformation of English Teaching Assessment in Primary and Secondary Schools from the Perspective of Core Competencies: A 2023 General Project of Shandong Province Educational Teaching Research (Project No.: 2023JXY084).
Research on Enhancement Pathways of Assessment Literacy for Secondary School English Teachers in the Era of Educational Evaluation Reform: A 2024 Key Cultivation Project on Basic Education Teaching Reform at Qilu Normal University (Project No.: XJG2024044).
Conflicts of Interest
The author declares no conflicts of interest.