The Language Assessment Process: A “Multiplism” Perspective

The Language Assessment Process: A “Multiplism” Perspective

1. What is assessment used for?

   • Administrative, instructional, and research.

2. The Language Assessment Process

   • • Determining the purpose of assessment • Defining language knowledge to be assessed • Selecting the assessment procedure • Designing items and tasks • Administering the assessment tool(s) • Determining the quality of the language sample/answers produced • Assessing the quality of the procedures • Interpreting the results • Reporting the results
   • Questions before start designing the instrument:
     • How is the language knowledge to be assessed defined?
     • What is the purpose for conducting this assessment procedure?

3. What instruments or assessment procedures will be chosen to elicit the required language knowledge?

   • Language assessment tools
     • • projects • putting on a play • creating a restaurant menu • simulating “real life” situations • reporting an event • creating a game or video-clip • corresponding in writing for various purposes.

4. Portfolio

   • collection of work, usually drawn from students’ classroom work.
     • Portfolios can be designed to assess student progress, effort, and/or achievement, and encourage students to reflect on their learning
       • Allows the language teacher to elicit different language samples and to gain added knowledge about different facets of the learner’s language ability.

5. Multiplicity in languague assesment

   • Multiple purposes of assessment:
     • •Predicting success •Placing students according to proficiency levels •Accepting or rejecting students to a language program •Providing feedback on students’ learning •Following the progress of individuals and groups •Motivating students to learn the language •Disciplining learners •Exercizing power in the language classroom •Conducting research on various facets of language study
   • Multiple assessment procedures.
     • Portfolios Homework Self-assessment Oral debates Tests Dramatic performances Projects Role plays Simulations Learning logs Interviews Peer-/Group-assessment Check lists Diaries Observations Presentations Dialogue journals Rubrics
   • Multiplism in designing items and tasks.
     • Multiple Choice True / False Open-ended Questions Essay Questions Summaries Cloze Passages Tasks Role Plays Reporting
   • Multiple ways of administering.
     • • one-to-one administration • paper and pencil format • audio-taped tests • visual stimuli and questions • computer-administered assessment • in-classroom vs. take-home • on site assessment (at the workplace) • formal and informal administration
   • Multiple criteria for determining language quality.
     • • total score • standards, benchmarks, competencies, can-dos, bandscales • diagnostic criteria • holistic rating scales • analytic rating scales • rubrics • guidelines • native / non-native criteria
   • Multiple criteria for determining the quality of assessment procedures.
     • • Content validity • Concurrent validity • Predictive validity • Construct validity • Face validity • Reliability
   • Multiple ways of interpreting and reporting results. Multiple Ways of Interpreting Results:
     • • Context-embedded interpretation • Dialoguing with the student • as test scores • providing diagnostic information • notifying as Pass or Fail • comparison of grades (to other populations) • creating learner profiles • providing verbal descriptions and interpretive summaries • reporting in form of narratives • creating progress reports

6. By: Erwin Guzman