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Developing Language Proficiency through Assessment in French as a Second Language

A collaborative professional development project of the Edmonton Regional Learning Consortium (ERLC) the Alberta Assessment Consortium (AAC), and the Institute for Innovation in Second Language Education (IISLE) in Edmonton Public Schools

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Who are you?

Introduce yourself, and tell us:

school/ jurisdiction grade level of FSL you teach something you hope to get out of this

workshop

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Agenda

1. Workshop goals

2. The big picture

3. A current snapshot

4. Role of curricular documents

5. Principles & purposes of assessment

6. Assessment strategies & tools

7. Future directions

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Workshop Goals

Strengthen understanding of the overarching goal of FSL Program of Studies

Reflect on current assessment practices and explore new assessment strategies

Discuss and explore how assessment can be used to achieve functional language proficiency, using Alberta curricular documents

Select assessment tools and strategies for use in the FSL classroom

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The Big Picture: What is it?

Examine the photo puzzles at your table.

How many can you identify?

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What does it mean?

What is the forest? What is both the forest and the trees of: French as a Second Language Classroom assessment Language proficiency

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The Big Picture for FSL: Building Language Proficiency

Language Proficiency What someone can do in a language

Proficiency assessment “assessment of what someone can

do/knows in relation to the application of the subject in the real world.” (Council of Europe)

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What’s happening in assessment?

List language assessment tasks that you typically use to gather information for FSL in a term.

Snowball time!

Assessment in FSL for Term ___

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What’s happening in assessment?

Oral production Oral interaction

Listening comprehension

Reading comprehension

Written production

Tally the data in your group. Which language skills do the language assessments fit best with?

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√ Proficiency Checkpoint

Look at the assessment strategies listed

Which of these reflect a real-life application of language use?

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The ‘front matter’… matters!

THE OVERARCHING GOAL of the FSL Program of

Studies

“The overarching goal of this program of

studies, then, is to develop students who are

sufficiently competent in French so that they

can function in the language and culture

outside the confines of the classroom.”

p.8, French as a Second Language

Nine-year Program of Studies (Grades 4-12)

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The Big Picture for FSL: Building Language Proficiency

Language Proficiency What someone can do in a language

Proficiency assessment “assessment of what someone can

do/knows in relation to the application of the subject in the real world.” (Council of Europe)

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FSL Program of Studies

General outcomes

Specific outcomes

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General Outcomes

Communication

Language

Culture

Language Learning Strategies

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Specific Outcomes

the details of what students must know and be able to do at each grade

exit outcomes

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Car Metaphor

Driver: Communication

Front seat passenger: Language

Passenger: Culture

Passenger: Language Learning Strategies

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What’s new?

Program Articulation Documents

grade 4-6 grade 7-9 grade 10-12

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Why a Program Articulation document?

Provides a new focus on Communicative Targets (language functions) while still addressing existing general and specific outcomes

Assists teachers to interpret the Program of Studies document to ensure the development of language proficiency

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Focus on Communicative Targets & Overarching Goal

What do the overarching goal and the Communicative Targets have in common?

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Think about…

Because students need to . . .

then as a teacher, I need to . . .

• function in French outside the classroom

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Linking curriculum to assessment

We’ve done lots of thinking about the FSL curricular documents…

Now what about assessment?

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Principles and Purposes of Assessment

Establishing a Framework for Classroom Assessment

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The Key Visual . . .

a framework for classroom assessment

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Agenda

1. Workshop goals

2. The big picture

3. A current snapshot

4. Role of curricular documents

5. Principles & purposes of assessment

6. Assessment strategies & tools

7. Future directions

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Pause Café

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Assessment Strategies vs. Assessment Tools

Assessment Strategies are how you gather information to find out what the students can do in French

(e.g. observation)

Assessment Tools are what you use to record that information

(e.g. observational checklist)

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Assessment Strategies to build language proficiency

How do we gather evidence of learning?

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Examples of Assessment Strategies

Observations Self-reflection Peer Coaching Teacher Feedback Performance Tasks/Projects Assignments Tests

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Assessment Strategies

Review the FSL tasks (with Communicative Targets) on the handout.

Discuss your choices with an elbow partner

Debrief as a large group

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To build language proficiency…

Which types of assessment strategies help students build French language proficiency?

Which types of assessment strategies may have less impact on French language proficiency?

Which assessment strategies focus on about what students can DO in French rather than just what they know about French.

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Assessment StrategiesA balanced assessment plan is essential to gather evidence of the range of learning within our curriculum.

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Flashback!

think about your most memorable language assessment experience as a student

rate it on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 is high) line out talk to the person next to you in the line If your experience was positive, what

made it so? If your experience was negative, what

could have improved it?

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Language Performance Assessment Tasks

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Why are performance assessment tasks so teacher-friendly?

Performance assessment tasks are great for FSL because they:

Address a number of outcomes at the same time Allow students to demonstrate what they can do in French

in a tangible way Engage students in learning over an extended period of

time Help to generate a grade (generally) Naturally incorporate assessment for learning strategies,

even if they are used for assessment of learning

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What is a performance assessment task?

a meaningful, real-life task that enables students to demonstrate what they know and can do in situations like those they will encounter outside the classroom as well as in situations that simulate how people do their work

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Authentic language

What does real-life, authentic language use mean?

What is “authentic” mean to the students?

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Authentic, or not?

Find someone in the room you have not yet worked with.

Determine if each of the FSL scenarios on your handout are authentic…or not.

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Debrief

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Snowball fight revisited

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Points to Ponder

. . . culminating [assessment] performances should be occasions of pleasure.

Gardner (2000)

We don’t mark students while they are learning

Alberta Assessment Consortium

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‘Made in Alberta’ Language Assessment Tasks

Free Shopping on the AAC website!www.aac.ab.ca → Performance Assessment Materials → Assessment Material → Second Languages → French as a Second Language

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Evaluation ToolsWhere and how do we record our observations and evaluations of student learning?

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Evaluation Tools

Evaluation tools are where and how we record our observations and evaluations of student learning.

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Evaluation Tools Jigsaw

Review your sample evaluation tool with your group

For each tool identify: key characteristics advantages/disadvantages in an FSL

classroom if it helps improve students’ French

language proficiency.

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Descriptive Feedback

Uses only specific, descriptive, written (or oral) feedback

Needs no letter grades, percentage, number rankings

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Checklist

Uses “yes/not yet” descriptors

Comment column is optional

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Rating Scale

Frequency, consistency or independence of occurrence

Comment column is optional

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Rubric

Describes levels of quality

Provides a ‘word picture’ of what student work at each level ‘looks like’

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A note about rubrics for FSL

First criteria statement(s) focus on message (making meaning)

Beware the ‘double dip’

Be sure expectations are reasonable for curricular and cognitive level

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‘Made in Alberta’ Assessment Feedback Tasks

www.aac.ab.ca → Tools and Templates → Feedback Tools and Templates

**Make sure you have your username and password!

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“I Can” statements

I Can statements are frequently used by teachers to help strengthen instruction and assessment

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Creating great FSL I Can statements

Tie it to curriculum Reflect communicative intent,

rather than discrete grammatical skills or vocabulary areas

Use student-friendly language Use to frame instruction and

assessment

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Think about…

Look at the ‘I Can’ statements on your handout.

Do each fit the criteria for great ‘I Can’ statements?

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Developing I Can statements

Look at the AAC language task, developed by FSL teachers.

What do you think the ‘I Can’ statements should be for this task?

How should the ‘I Can’ statements be used?

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I Can statements are international!

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Future directions in language assessment

Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR)

European Language Portfolio (ELP)

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Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR)

The Council of Europe developed the CEFR to provide descriptions of language proficiency at different levels

www.coe.int/portfolio

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Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR)

Describes levels of proficiency in language skill areas: oral production, oral interaction, written production, listening, reading

Is the basis for the European Language Portfolio (ELP)

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European Language Portfolio (ELP)

The European Language Portfolio (ELP) is a means of recording and reflecting on skills and experiences in different languages, acquired in school or outside.

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How does this ‘fit’ with Alberta?

Promotes self-reflection through “I can” statements

Focuses on language proficiency (rather than deficiency)

Task-based language learning

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Workshop Goals

Strengthen understanding of the overarching goal of FSL Program of Studies

Reflect on current assessment practices and explore new assessment strategies

Discuss and explore how assessment can be used to achieve functional language proficiency, using Alberta curricular documents

Select assessment tools and strategies for use in the FSL classroom

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We invite you to complete an evaluation form.

A collaborative professional development project of the Edmonton Regional Learning Consortium (ERLC) the Alberta Assessment Consortium (AAC), and the Institute for Innovation in Second Language Education (IISLE) in Edmonton Public Schools

Thank you for your participation.