Assessment: Classroom Language TestsBy Ivan Aguilar

Objectives

By the end of this presentation we will have…• described principles of language assessment• identified important consideration used in

designing classroom assessment test• Applied and evaluated a sample test under the

light of the principles and guidelines presented

ASSESSMENT

Assessment

Assessment

Organization

Formal Informal

Purpose

Formative Sumative

Sharing experiences…• When was the last time you took an exam?• How did it go?• Do you feel it gave you clear information about

your level of Knowledge or Skill?

Principles of Language Assessment

Principles• Validity• Reliability• Practicality• Authenticity• Washback

Validity• The test or test item measures what it intends to

measure.Not valid: a) He is a doctor b) She are a doctor c) They is a doctor

Valid:a) He works at nightb) He works in the morningc) He works all day

Reliability

Results on test A

Name Grade 1 Grade 2

Hugo 10 19

Paco 12 18

Luis 20 06

Donald 04 12

Richy 09 07

Ivan 20 11

Results on test B

Name Grade 1 Grade 2

Hugo 14 13

Paco 13 11

Luis 08 09

Donald 16 19

Richy 17 15

Ivan 16 16

• The test results stay consistant over time. Distinguishes “good” from “bad”

Practicality• The test useful in terms of effort needed for its

construction, time administration, grading, and resources invested.

• Not practical: A test that lasts for three hours and contains 150 items.

Authenticity• The test reflects –to the extent possible- tasks

that the students will confront in the real world. (depending on the context where you are teaching)

Authentic: to answer comprehension question after reading a manual.

Non-authentic: to recite from memory a list of 20 verbs

Washback

How will the design of the test affect…• The way the students study• The way the teachers teach• The way the institution sees the learning of

English• The effectiveness of the language program (Area)

Designing Classroom Language Tests

Considerations in test design

1. What is the purpose of the test?2. What are the learning objectives to be assessed?3. How will the test specifications reflect the

purpose and the objectives?4. How will the test tasks be selected and the items

arranged?5. What kind of scoring, grading, feedback is

expected?

Common test purposes

Placement Test

• Where in the language program?

Diagnostic tets

• What pre-requirements according to the course learning objective?

Achievement tests

• What and to what degree were the learning objectives achieved?

Proficiency tests

• What is the overall langauge ability of the test taker?

WITHIN THE LANGUAGE CLASSROOM

Learning Objectives

• Know what you want to test in performance and linguistic terms.

Example:Ss will be able to describe people’s appearance using the verb be/have/possessives and vocabulary related.

Test specifications• Outline of the test• Skills to be included• Items types and

tasks

Listening (10 minutes)

Format: Five Multiple choice questions. (Five points)

Task: Students listen for detail information

Reading (20 minutes)

Format: 10 Comprehension questions (Ten points)

Task: Students read and complete a questionnaire

Writing (10minutes)

Format: Short composition (Five points, refer to scale)

Task: Students write about a personal experience

Tasks/items selection

• Devise your actual test items.

• Ideally, you should try your items to get some feedback.

Listening:

Voice recorded:

Where did George go after the party last night?

Ss read: a. He was tired.

b. He went home.

c. He met Oliver

ITEMS:Direct-Indirect/Integrative-Discrete

Direct• Write an e-mail to

your friend describing your vacations.

Indirect

• Complete a cloze

Integrative Discrete-point

• Listen to a lecture and write your response agreeing or disagreeing

• Select the best option A, B, C, D for the incomplete sentence

PERFORMANCE KNOWLEDGE

Matching activity

• Please, turn __ down the radio. It is too loud.

• Write the stress in the following words: Canada, China, Italy

• Read a short text and make an oral summary

• Answer a set of question in an interview

• Direct

• Indirect

• Integrative

• Discrete point

MCQs• Multiple Choice Questions are probably the most

commonly used format in developing classroom tests.

• MCQs consist of a stem and response.John____ to the store yesterday.

a. gob. gonec. wentd. goed

Tips for writing good MCQs

1. The question should be clear from the stem.2. One response option should be an unambiguous

correct best answer.3. Avoid using distractors like none of the above or

a, b, and c.4. Correct answers should appear in all positions5. Avoid writing absurd distractors6. Make the stem positive (Which verb is NOT…)7. Make sure all the questions are independent of

one another8. Use statistics to help you understand your MCQs

Grading and feedbackAspect Descriptor

Content Clear content related to thetask

1

Grammar Adequate use of grammar.

1

Vocabulary Adequate use of vocabulary

1

Organization

Ideas well organized 1

Mechanics Good use of punctuation and writing conventions

1

TOTAL 5

Meta-Evaluation

Evaluate the evaluation (Meta-evaluation)• Is the instrument…?• Valid• Reliable• Practical• Authentic• Able to provide positive washback

• Is the information provided by the instrument…?• Easy to organize• Empowering for future actions/decisions/remedial

To learn more about Teaching and Learning English visit my website at:

To learn more…

www.ivantrainer.weebly.com

Thank you