Reverse Observation as a Lever for Hybrid Assessment in the Language Classroom: A Study of the Pedagogical Framework in the Master 1 Program, Department of French, University of El-Oued (Algeria)

Abstract

This contribution highlights the stakes of reverse observation as a lever for establishing hybrid assessment in Algerian university education, particularly within the context of the global health crisis. To address this, we propose implementing this remote assessment framework within the teaching and learning of the Observation of Pedagogical Practices (OPP) module in the Master 1 program at the Department of French of the University of El-Oued. At this level of education, students primarily rely on direct observation to analyze and synthesize the teacher's pedagogical practices. The guided dimension of the teaching-learning situation thus becomes a central element of their training, in which they play an active, even driving, role in their own in-class evaluation. We experimented with various strategies of this unique form of observation and assessment in language courses by reversing the traditional roles in the progression of activities. These experiments were conducted with 12 Master 1 groups from two distinct cohorts, accompanied by directive and semi-directive interviews carried out with a representative sample of students. The results show that reverse observation and hybrid assessment have a positive impact on the planning of post-university learning. They facilitate the transfer and reuse of acquired knowledge, while contributing to the construction of didactic and pedagogical knowledge. These practices also promote the development of writing confidence, the implementation of telecollaboration, and allow students to better understand their own experiences. In conclusion, this new approach deserves to be sustainably integrated into the pedagogical practices of the Algerian university.