An Empirical Study On Enhancing Middle School Students' English Writing Self-efficacy Through Portfolio Assessment

In recent years, English writing as a form of written communication has received more and more attention. It is a comprehensive embodiment for students'English language proficiency, and it can reflect the actual level of students'English learning. However, in the English teaching practice, teaching writing is always time-consuming and laborious, while the result is always discouraging. Most previous studies in English writing teaching is focused on teaching and learning methods, with personal factors little concerned. With the rise of humanist theory, emotional factors have stimulated the interest of researchers and educators, their status and roles in second language learning have gradually been recognized. In the field of English writing teaching and research, self-efficacy is considered to be an important motivation factor which can affect students'writing behavior, writing process and the outcomes. Therefore, to enhance students' writing self-efficacy is an effective way to improve the writing instruction situation and students'writing proficiency.The New Curriculum advocated the combined use of formative assessment and summative assessment so as to promote the continuous development of students. Portfolio assessment is now a new evaluation model, which has not been widely used in the country. Being an effective means of formative assessment, it has all the merits that formative assessment does. The author takes an interest in how portfolio assessment on students'writing increases students'writing self-efficacy and how the two factors influence students'writing proficiency. Through empirical study, the author tries to demonstrate that in comparison with summative assessment, portfolio assessment plays an obviously active role in the improvement of students'writing self-efficacy and their writing proficiency.This experimental research is carried out in Beijing Economics and Management School. Two classes of senior one students of the similar English level were randomly chosen as an experimental class and a control class. Portfolio assessment is integrated into the teaching of the experimental class, while traditional summative assessment is adopted in the control class. Data can be collected from pretest and posttest as well as two questionnaires. Through analysis and discussion, the author finds that the experimental class has made great improvements both in writing self-efficacy and in writing proficiency; that portfolio assessment has a great influence on the writing self-efficacy of low- and middle- level students, while it has little effect on that of high level students.The study has demonstrated that portfolio assessment is an effective way to enhance students'writing self-efficacy, which has certain significance on the reform of writing instruction. There are also some limitations and problems left unsolved, the educators and researchers need to make continued efforts for constant improvement and progress.