Assessments - How to evaluate langauge skills (05/07/14)

Assessments help educators gauge their students prior to, during, and post learning concepts. Some accepted and not so revered standardized test acronyms are below.  Which one(s) are you familiar with?  I have heard of TOEFL, and believe I heard of CALP in the past, but was introduced to TOEIC and IELTS, this year.

TOEFL® -Test of English as a foreign language.

TOEIC®- Test of English for International Communication

IELTS™ - International English Language Testing System

CALP - Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency

Assessment is a continuous process that goes beyond simply testing students. A good teacher never ceases to evaluate students, whether those assessments are incidental (informal) or intentional (formal).  In the language classroom, the principles of assessment can serve as guidelines for the design of measuring tools that appraise the efficacy of an existing procedure.  These principles are:

• Practicality - a practical test is within the means of financial limitations, time constraints, ease of administration, and scoring and interpretation;
• Reliability- a reliable test is consistent and dependable;
• Validity - test validity is the degree to which it actually measures what it is intended to measure.
• content validity - the test actually samples the subject matter about which conclusions are to be drawn;
• face validity- convincing the learner that the test is indeed testing what it claims to test;
• construct validity- based on theoretical constructs (proficiency, communicative competence, self-esteem, etc.);
•  Authenticity - an authentic test has characteristics that correspond with the given language test task and the features of a target language task;
• Washback - feedback about student competence that is established by performance, but  based on useful diagnoses of strengths and weaknesses

There are numerous types of tests, but Brown (2007) highlights five types that can be found in the language curricula: Proficiency, Diagnostic, Placement, Achievement, and Aptitude.   Within each of the five categories (types) exists a variety of techniques and procedures that range from open-ended to structured response options and written to oral performance modes. Also mentioned are those that range from multiple-choice to fill-in-the-blank item design formats and objective to subjective scoring procedures.

In classroom-based assessments there are practical steps to test construction.  Brown suggests the following:

1. Test toward clear, unambiguous objectives.
2. Design test specifications based on your objectives.
3. Draft the test.
4. Make revisions to the test.
5. Final-edit, word-process, and print the test.
6. Utilize feedback after administering the test.
7. Provide ample washback.

What really piqued my interest was the section devoted to alternatives in assessment.  These alternatives emphasize the responsibility to apply all assessment principles to such options, and do not to treat them as strange deviations from normal assessment practices. This blog actually began as a creative alternative assessment and not because I could not do the original assignment, but because I desired to take the opportunity offered to do something creatively different. I am so grateful for this option to demonstrate that I have been actively engaged in my own learning process.  Additionally, I hope to maintain this blog as an educational professional for the benefit of pre-service and veteran teachers. 

Alternative Assessments, though, can be in several forms.  Those that are most common are:
Portfolios 
A purposeful collection of students' work that demonstrates efforts, progress, & achievements in given areas;

Journals 
Language learning-logs, responses to readings, and reflections on attitudes and feelings about oneself;

Conferences
Ungraded student-teacher meetings that produce dialogues to encourage student self-reflection;

Observations
Assessment done frequently and discreetly so that the naturalness of linguistic performance is maximized;

Self- and Peer-Assessments
Encourage autonomy and increased motivation because of self-involvement in the learning process;

Some other alternatives not listed above are works of fine art, websites or blogs, videos and video blogs, songs, poetry, and short story creation.  The list of alternatives could be endless, but the concern would be whether or not the alternatives will maximize practicality and reliability in the procedures, while focusing on the students' actual language performance.

I love the English language and believe that there are so many ways for students to experience success while learning it.  Assessments are an important part of helping students know where they are and determine what they may need in order to progress and reach their language goals.  Let's make sure we are fair when we consider what we teach and what we want students to learn.

Brown, H. D. (2007). Teaching by principles: An interactive approach to language 

             pedagogy (3^rd edition). White Plains, NY: Pearson Education

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