LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT

INDIVIDUAL  ASIGNMENT OF LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT

        By :

1.  Fitri Yunita                NPM. 12.1.01.08.0215P

ENGLISH EDUCATION DEPARTMENT

UNIVERSITY OF NUSANTARA PGRI KEDIRI

Jl. K. H. Achmad Dahlan No. 76 Kediri, Phone : (0354) 771576

Kediri , 2013

1.TESTING, ASSESSING, TEACHING

·         What is a test ?

A test, in simple terms, is a method of measuring a person’s ability; knowledge, or performance in a given domain. Let’s look at the components of this definition. A test is first a method. It is an instrument- a set of techniques, procedures, or items that requires performance on the part of test-taker. Second, a test must measure. Some tests measure general ability, while others determine a general ability level; a quiz on recognizing correct use of definite articles measure specific knowledge.

Next, a test measures an individual’s ability; knowledge, or performance. Testers need to understand who the test-takers are. What their previous experience and background? Is the test appropriately matched to their abilities? How should test-takers interpret their scores? Finally, a test measures in given domain. In the case of proficiency test, even though the actual performance on the test involves only a sampling of skills, that domain is overall proficiency in a language-general competence in all skill of a language.

A well-constructed test is an instrument that provides an accurate measure of the test-takers’ ability within a particular domain.

·         Assessment and teaching

Assessment is popular and sometimes misunderstood term in current educational practice. You might be to think of testing and assessing as synonymous terms, but they are not. Tests are prepared administrative procedures that occur at identifiable times in a curriculum when learners muster all their faculties to offer peak performance, knowing that their responses are being measured and evaluated.

Assessment, on the other hand, is an ongoing process that encompasses a much wider domain. Whenever a student responds to a question, offers a comment, or tries out a new word or structure, the teacher subconsciously makes an assessment of the student’s performance.

At the same time, during these practice activities, teachers are indeed observing students’ performance and making various evaluations of each learner: How did the performance compare to previous performance? Which aspects of the performance were better than others? Is the learner performing up to an expected potential? How does the performance compare to that of others in the same learning community? In the ideal classroom, all these observations feed into the way the teacher provides instruction to each student.

·         Informal and Formal Assessment

One way to begin untangling the lexical conundrum created by distinguishing among tests, assessment, and teaching is to distinguish between informal and formal assessment. Informal assessment can take a number of forms, Starting with incidental, unplanned comments and responses, along with coaching and other impromptu feedback to the students. A good deal of teacher’s informal assessment is embedded in classroom tasks designed to elicit performance without recording results and making fixed judgment about a student’s competence.

On the other hand, formal assessments are exercises or procedures specifically designed to tap into a storehouse of skills and knowledge. They are systematic, planned sampling techniques constructed to give teacher and students an appraisal of students’ achievement.

·         Formative and summative assessment

Another useful distinction to bear in mind is the function of assessment: how is the procedure to be used? Two functions are commonly identified in the literature formative and summative assessment. Most our classroom assessment is formative assessment: evaluating students in the process of “forming” their competencies and skills with the goal of helping them to continue that growth process. The key to such formation is the delivery (by the teacher) and internalization (by the students) of appropriate feedback on performance, with an eye toward the future continuation (or formation) of learning.

Summative assessment aims to measure, or summarize, what a student has grasped, and typically occurs at the end of a course or unit of instruction. A summation of what a students’ has learned implies looking back and taking stock of how well the student has accomplished objectives, but does not necessarily point the way to future progress.

·         Norm-Referenced and Criterion-Referenced tests

Another dichotomy that is important to clarify here and that aids in sorting out common terminology in assessment is the distinction between norm-referenced and criterion-referenced testing. In norm-referenced tests, each test-takers’ score is interpreted in relation to mean (average score), median (middle score), standard deviation (extent of variance score), and/or percentile rank. The purpose in such tests is to place test-takers along in the form of numerical score.

Criterion-referenced test, on the other hand, are designed to give test-takers feedback, usually in the form of grades, on specific course or lesson objectives. Classroom tests involving the students in only one class, and connected to a curriculum, are typical of criterion-referenced testing. In a criterion-referenced test, the distribution of students’ score across a continuum may be of little concern as long as the instrument assesses appropriate objectives.

2. APPROACHES TO TEACHING, LEARNING, AND LANGUAGE TESTING

A brief history of language testing over the past half-century will serve as a backdrop to an understanding of classroom-based testing. Historically, language-testing trends and practices have followed the shifting sands of teaching methodology. For example, in the 1950s an era of behaviorism and special attention to contrastive analysis, testing focused on specific language elements such as the phonological, grammatical, and lexical contrast between two languages.

·         Discrete-point and Integrative Testing

Discrete-point tests are constructed on the assumption that language can be broken down into its component parts and that those parts can be tested successfully. These components are the skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing and various units of language (discrete language) of phonology, graphology, morphology, lexicon, syntax, and discourse. It was claimed that an overall language proficiency test, then should sample all four skills and as many linguistic discrete points as possible.

What does an integrative test look like? Two types of tests have historically been claimed to be examples or integrative tests: cloze tests and dictations. A cloze test is a reading passage (perhaps 150 to 300 words) in which roughly every sixth or seventh word has been deleted the test-taker is required to supply words that fit into those blanks. Dictation is familiar language-teaching technique that evolved into a testing technique. Essentially, learners listen to passage of 100 to 150 words read aloud by an administrator (or audiotape) and write what they hear, using correct spelling.

Supporters argue that dictation is an integrative test because it taps into grammatical and discourse competencies required careful listening, reproduction in writing of what is heard, efficient short-term mem

·         Communicative Language Testing

A new theory of language and language use that exerted significant influence on language teaching and therefore language testing from the early 1970s was the theory of communicative competence.Communicative competence is a linguistic term which refers to a learner’s second language ability. It refers to a learner’s ability to: apply and use grammatical rules,form correct utterances,use these utterances appropriately

The term was coined by Dell Hymes (in 1966) who was inspired by Noam Chomsky‘s distinction on linguistic competence and performance. According to Chomsky (1965) a speaker’s language ability comprised two components: linguistic competence and linguistic performance. Hymes proposed that knowing a language entailed knowing more than its grammar and rules. According to Hymes there culturally specific rules that created a relationship between:the language used,features of the communicative context. e.g. What is appropriate language for communication with a sibling may not be appropriate for communication with an employer or lecturer.

Before the theory of communicative competence, language was often described from a psychological perspective, but this theory marked a profound shift in how language was perceived as it presented language as an internal phenomenon.

With the appearance of the communicative competence theory the focus shifted to a more sociological one, where the focus was on external, social functions of language.

The relevance of Hymes’ theory to language testing was almost immediately recognized when it appeared.

However, it was a decade later that its actual impact was felt on practice with the development of communicative language testing

Communicative language tests (CLT) are distinguished by two main features:

a.       CLTs are performance tests and therefore require assessment to be carried out when the learner or candidate in engaged in an extended (receptive/productive) act of communication

b.      CLTs pay attention to the social roles candidates would assume and hence considers the roles that candidates would assume in the real world on passing the test and offers a means of specifying the demands of such roles in detail

Models of communicative ability

Thought it was a challenge to shift perspectives not to mention focuses of language tests, there was a continuous theoretical engagement with the idea of communicative competence and its implications for the performance requirements of communicative language testing since the advent of the theory of communicative competence.

A number of writers have tried to specify the components of communicative competence in second languages and their role in performance.

The purpose of this is to provide a comprehensive framework for: test development,testing research , an interpretation of test performance.

The first such models specified the components of knowledge of language without dealing in detail with their role in performance.

In 1980, Michael Canale and Merrill Swain published a paper that specified four components of communicative competence:

Grammatical competence- knowledge of systematic features of grammar, lexis and phonology

Sociolinguistic competence - knowledge of rules of language use in terms of what is appropriate in different contexts

Strategic competence - ability to compensate for incomplete or imperfect linguistic resources in a second language by using (other) successful communication strategies

Discourse competence - ability to deal with extended use of language in context (cohesion and coherence)ory; and to an extent.

·         Performance-Based Assessment

Performance-based assessment of language typically involves oral production, written production, open-ended responses, integrated performance, group performance and other interactive tasks. To be sure, such assessment is time-consuming and therefore expensive, but those extra efforts are paying off in the form of more direct testing because students are assessed as they perform actual or stimulated real-world tasks. In technical terms, higher content validity is achieved because learners are measures in the process of performing the targeted linguistic acts.

3. SOME CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD ENGLISH TEST

·         Practicality: a practical test is easy to administer and to score without wasting too much time or effort.

·         Reliability : a test is considered reliable if it is taken again by the same students under the same circumstances and the score average is almost the constant , taking into consideration that the time between the test and the retest is of reasonable length.

·         Validity: a test is considered as valid when it measures what it is supposed to measure.

·         Authenticity: the language of a test should reflect everyday discourse.

·         Washback

Any language test or piece of assessment must have positive washback (backwash), by which I mean that the effect of the test on the teaching must be beneficial. This should be held in mind by the test constructors; it is only too easy to construct a test which leads, for example, to candidates learning material by heart or achieving high marks by simply applying test-taking skills rather than genuine language skills

4. DESIGNING AUTHENTIC  CLASSROOM LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT

·          Types of Authentic Assessment

The first task you face in designing a test for your students is to determine the purpose for the test. Defining your purpose will help you choose the right kind of test and it will also help you to focus on the specific objectives of the test. Two types to create as a classroom teacher – language aptitude tests and language proficiency tests, and three types that you will almost certainly need to create – placement test, diagnostic tests, and achievement tests.

a.      Language Aptitude Tests

A language aptitude test is designed to measure capacity or general ability to learn a foreign language and ultimate success in that undertaking. Language aptitude tests are ostensibly designed to apply to the classroom learning of any language.

Task in the modern language aptitude test

1. Number learning : Examinees must learn a set of numbers through aural input and then discriminate different combination of those numbers.

2. Phonetic script : Examinees must team a set of correspondences between speech sounds and phonetic symbols.

3. Spelling dues : Examinees must need words that are spelled some what phonetically

4. Word in sentence : Examinees are given a key word in a sentence and are then asked to select a word in second sentence that performs the same grammatical action as the key word.

5. Paired associates : Examinees must quickly team a set of vocabulary words from another language and memorize their English meaning.

b.      Proficiency Tests

A proficiency test is not limited to any one course, curriculum, or single skill in the language, rather, is tests overall ability. Proficiency tests have traditionally consisted of standardized multiple. Choice items on grammar vocabulary, reading comprehension and aural comprehension. Some times also writing is added.

Proficiency test are almost always summative and norm – referenced. For example test of English as a foreign language (TOEFL) produced by the educational testing service.

c.       Placement Tests

Certain proficiency tests can act in the role of placement tests, the purpose of which is to place a student into a particular level or section of language curriculum or school. Placement tests come in many varieties; Assessing comprehension and production, responding through written and oral performance, ended and limited responses, selection (multiple - choice) and gap-filling formats, depending on the nature of a program and its needs.

d.      Diagnostic Tests

A diagnostic tests is designed to diagnose specified aspects of a language. A test in pronunciation, for example. Might diagnose the phonological features of English that are difficult for learners and should there fore become part of a curriculum.

There is also a fine line of difference between a diagnostic test and a general achievement test. Achievement test analyze the extent to which students have acquired language features that have already been taught, diagnostic tests should elicit information on what students need to work on in the future. In a curriculum that has a form – focused phase, for example, a diagnostic test might offer information about a learner’s acquisition of verb tense, modal auxiliaries, definite articles, relative clause and the like.

e.       Achievement Tests

An achievement test is related directly to classroom lessons, units, or even a total curriculum achievement tests are (or should be) limited to particular material addressed in curriculum within a particular time frame and are offered a course has focused on the objectives in question.

Achievement tests are often summative because they are administered at the end of a unit or term of study. The specifications for an achievement test should be determined by :

• The objectives of the lesson, unit, or course being assessed

• The relative importance (or weight) assigned to each objective

• The tasks employed in classroom lessons during the unit of time.

Achievement tests range from five or ten – minute quizzes to three hour final examinations, with an almost in finite variety of item types and formats. Here is the outline for a midterm examination offered at the high intermediate level of an intensive English program in the US:

Section A Vocabulary

Part 1 (5 items) : Match words and definitions

Part 2 (5 items) : use the words in a sentence

Section B Grammar

(10 sentences) : error detection (Underline or circle the error)

Section  C Reading Comprehension

(2 one paragraph passage) : Four short – answer items for each

Section D Writing

Respond to a two-paragraph article on Native American culture

  5. SOME PRACTICAL STEPS TO TEST CONSTRUCTION

·         Designing Multiple-Choice Test Items

This is a back-to-basics article about the undervalued and little-discussed multiple choice question. It’s not as exciting as discussing 3D virtual learning environments, but it might be just as important. If you need to use tests, then you want to reduce the errors that occur from poorly written items.

The rules covered here make tests more accurate, so the questions are interpreted as intended and the answer options are clear and without hints. Just in case you’re not familiar with multiple choice terminology, it’s explained in the visual below.

Here are the ten rules. If you have any others, please add them through the Comments form below.

Rule 1: Test comprehension and critical thinking, not just recall

Multiple choice questions are criticized for testing the superficial recall of knowledge. You can go beyond this by asking learners to interpret facts, evaluate situations, explain cause and effect, make inferences, and predict results.

Rule 2: Use simple sentence structure and precise wording

Write test questions in a simple structure that is easy to understand. And try to be as accurate as possible in your word choices. Words can have many meanings depending on colloquial usage and context.

Rule 3: Place most of the words in the question stem

If you’re using a question stem, rather than an entire question, ensure that most of the words are in the stem. This way, the answer options can be short, making them less confusing and more legible.

Rule 4: Make all distractors plausible

All of the wrong answer choices should be completely reasonable. This can be very hard to accomplish, but avoid throwing in those give-away distractors as it detracts from the test’s validity. If you’re really stuck, get help from your friendly SME. (BTW, this word can also be spelled as “distracter.”)

Rule 5: Keep all answer choices the same length

This can be difficult to achieve, but expert test-takers can use answer length as a hint to the correct answer. Often the longest answer is the correct one. When I can’t get all four answers to the same length, I use two short and two long.

Rule 6: Avoid double negatives

No big news here, right? Don’t use combinations of these words in the same question: not, no, nor, the -un prefix, etc. For example, this type of question could confuse test-takers: ‘Which of the following comments would NOT be unwelcome in a work situation?’ Flip it around and write it in the positive form: ‘Which of the following comments are acceptable in a work situation?’

Rule 7: Mix up the order of the correct answers

Make sure that most of your correct answers aren’t in the “b” and “c” positions, which can often happen. Keep correct answers in random positions and don’t let them fall into a pattern that can be detected. When your test is written, go through and reorder where the correct answers are placed, if necessary.

Rule 8: Keep the number of options consistent

Did you ever have to convince a SME that he or she can’t have answer choices that go to ‘h’ in one question and ‘c’ in the next? It’s something of a user interface issue. Making the number of options consistent from question to question helps learners know what to expect. Research doesn’t seem to agree on whether 3 or 4 or 5 options is best. Personally, I like to use 4 options. It feels fair.

Rule 9: Avoid tricking test-takers

As faulty as they are, tests exist to measure knowledge. Never use questions or answer options that could trick a learner. If a question or its options can be interpreted in two ways or if the difference between options is too subtle, then find a way to rewrite it.

Rule 10: Use ‘All of the Above’ and ‘None of the Above’ with caution

I hate this rule because when you run out of distractors, All of the Above and None of the Above can come in handy. But they may not promote good instruction. Here’s why. All of the Above can be an obvious give-away answer when it’s not used consistently. Also, the All of the Above option can encourage guessing if the learner thinks one or two answers are correct. In addition, the downside to None of the Above is that you can’t tell if the learner really knew the correct answer.

·         Designins Close Test And Essay

Cloze test: A gap-filling task, where words are deleted at fixed stages in a text and the candidate has to replace them. For example, a cloze test may have every 6th word deleted. Cloze tests are easy to prepare, but because of the random effect of the deletion of every nth word, different cloze tests behave very differently from one another. They should, therefore, undergo item analysis before they are given to candidates.

Composition/ Essay: A task where candidates have to produce at least a paragraph of their own written language. Such tasks are marked subjectively (see analytic and holistic marking scales).