The Evaluation of the Output of Iran's High School Education System from the Literary and Linguistic Skills Points of View

The current research has been conducted to analyze the status of the literary and linguistic skills among the high school graduates. Based on research questions, the four skills of reading, writing, listening and speaking of the graduates, the impact of gender and major have been investigated in 7 provinces including East Azarbijan, Kurdistan, Kohguiluye-Boyer Ahmad, Mazandaran, Fars, Yazd and Markazi through directed sampling, for a sample size of 327 females and 282 males in three disciplines of humanities, sciences and mathematics, in 1396-1397. The findings indicated that the graduates have not reached the mastery in any one of the linguistic skills. However, they achieved the minimum score in at least three skills of writing, listening and speaking and could overcome the level of insufficiency. Females got higher score in all four skills. Regarding their majors, in the humanities, the highest score went to speaking and writing, while in mathematics and natural sciences, writing held the highest score. Meanwhile, the most focus of educational construction is on reading. The results show that the lowest score belongs to reading in all majors. The analysis of the present evaluation stated that achieving the minimum mastery level in literary and linguistic skills was not successful enough and the policy of teaching Persian language and literature have been failed as well.



1. Introduction

Accurate teaching of the four language skills of reading, writing, listening, and speaking, is the first expectation in children and adolescents' education. Students are not able to develop different aspects of their competences without linguistic tools. The identification role of language and its impact on establishing the national pride is considered as another value which emphasizes the importance of teaching language skills. The current research renders the effectiveness of the twelve-year education on the graduates' literary and language skills by analyzing the status of the literary and language skills of the output of Iran's high school education system. The research questions are as follows:

1. How good are the graduates at four language skills, discretely?

2. How is any of the skills regarding the gender and field of study of the graduates?

The main hypothesis is that the output of the education system has reached the dominance level in four skills, after twelve years of education.



2. Methodology

The methodology of this research is based on cross-sectional survey. The statistical society is 34481 and the statistical sample is 609 graduates of governmental and non-governmental schools among 7 provinces including East Azarbaijan, Kurdistan, Kohguiluye-Boyer Ahmad, Mazandaran, Fars, Yazd and Markazi in three disciplines of humanities, sciences and mathematics, in 1396-1397 who are selected through cluster and multistage sampling.

Research tools are: 1. a researcher-made test (AMZA), including the four language skills, whose standardization has been done in the Academy of Persian Language and Literature. (For more information about the validity and reliability of the test refer to Daneshgar, 1395, pp. 86-106; Daneshgar, 1396, pp. 236-237); 2. a polling questionnaire for experts.



3. Results

The findings indicated that the graduates have not reached the dominance level in any one of the language skills. However, they achieved the minimum score in at least three skills of writing, listening and speaking and could overcome the level of insufficiency. Females got higher score in all four skills. Regarding their majors, the groups of natural sciences and mathematics held the highest score, respectively. The group of humanities performed the weakest in all skills.



4. Conclusion

In this research, the output of the education system, with provincial statistical sample, regarding the four language skills has been evaluated online and web-based for the first time in Iran. According to the main hypothesis, the output should have been reached the dominance level in using language skills after twelve years of education. However, the results show that no acceptable language competence is gained.

Reading, an acquired perceptual skill, is the most fundamental one that the formal educational construction aims at and plans for. Meanwhile, a general comparison indicate that the lowest score belongs to reading, especially in males. They failed at obtaining the minimum score (50%) and passing the level of insufficiency.

The graduates of humanities got the weakest performance among all and as in all branches of this discipline, language competence is the most significant tool for discussion, analysis and presentation, this weakness should be taken seriously.

Since this weak result in teaching Persian language and literature is far different from aims and objectives of "national curriculum", "Fundamental Reform Document of Education (FRDE)" and "Persian Language and Literature Secondary school curriculum guide", it is necessary for the formal organization of education to find solutions and actions to come out of current undesirable situation through revision of its macro/micro plannings and also ask for other related organizations contributions