This study investigates the assessment practices in the Teaching of English as a Foreign Language to Young Learners (LEC) in the first year of primary education in public schools in the city of Castanhal, PA. The research analyze which guidelines are contained in official municipal documents with regards to teaching and assessment in LEC, to describe the assessment practices developed by teachers in this context, to analyze the integration of these practices with LEC's teaching and learning goals, and to indicate pointers to make the assessment of learning practices more effective, theoretically and methodologically. To achieve the proposed objectives, a qualitative documentary study was conducted. We analyzed the official documents that guide teaching and assessment in LEC, 220 student development reports, which are recommended assessment tool for this school level, as well as interviews and questionnaires given to 14 teachers working in this context. The theoretical framework is based on the contributions of Cameron (2001), Strecht-Ribeiro (2005) and Scott and Ytreberg (1990) regarding the teaching and learning of LEC, as well as the discussion of some aspects of assessment of learning (HADJI, 1994, 2007; BONNIOL; VIAL, 2001; FERNANDES, 2009; PERRENOUD, 1999) and assessment of learning in LEC (MCKAY, 2006; IOANNOU-GEORGIOU 2011; SHAABAN, 2001). For data analysis, we used the Content Analysis technique (ROSA, 2013). The analysis results indicate a lack of coherence between the assessment practices and the teaching goals and principles in LEC. The data also reveal a lack of training for teaching, assessing and designing syllabus in LEC, combined with a known tendency to prioritize structural aspects in the teaching of foreign languages, instead of communicative activities. Finally, this study shows the need to promote other studies that investigate the assessment practices used in LEC, as well as the urgency to define official national guidelines for teaching and assessment that take into account the characteristics and needs of the children within this context.
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