The Comparative Effect of Dynamic Assessment and Portfolio ‎Assessment on Iranian Intermediate EFL Learners’ Reading ‎Comprehension

New types of formative assessment are gradually replacing the old traditional summative assessment in the recent decades. Dynamic assessment and portfolio assessment are two of these formative assessment procedures which have received excessive attention in SLA research. Therefore, the present study was an effort to examine the effect of dynamic assessment and portfolio assessment on Iranian Intermediate EFL learners’ reading achievement. There were 50 female participants in the current investigation who were studying English at a private language institute in Tehran. The participants were selected on the basis of their performances on a Neslon Language Test. The participants were divided into two experimental groups each including 25 learners.  The first group received dynamic assessment model and second group received portfolio assessment model during the educational semester. Dynamic assessment (DA) model comprised three phases: pre-test, mediation, and post-test. The first group passed seven sessions of DA before the post-test. Then, the learners took a post-test which included four reading texts from PET practice book which the learners should answer the questions only by hints and no extra help. They said the number of hints they had to find the correct answers in order to calculate the ZPD score.  Scoring was through the interval scale. The second group received portfolio assessment model and went through the related phases. The post-test was the same as the first group. The gathered data was analyzed through Partial Eta Squared value test, demonstrating that the participants of the first experimental group through DA or dynamic assessment model could make a progress and this model had an effective impact on their success. In addition, it was found that dynamic assessment enhances learners’ satisfaction and activation in the learning process. The findings of the current study have some pedagogical implications for EFL language learners and teachers.