Note (Language Assessment)

8/10/2019 Note (Language Assessment)

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Assessmentan ongoing process that encompasses a wide range of

methodological techniques.

Testa method of measuring a persons ability, knowledge, or performance in a

given domain.

Measurementthe process of quantifying the observed performance of classroom

learners.

Evaluationis involved when the results of a test are used for decision making.

Formative & Summative

Formativeevaluating students in the process of forming their competencies

and skills with the goal of helping them to continue that growth process

Summativeaims to measure, or summarize, what a student has grasped and

typically occurs at the end of a course or unit of instruction

A methodits an instrument

a set of techniques, procedures,

or itemsthat requires

performance on the part of the

A test must measurea process

of quantifying a test-takers

performance according to

explicit rules or procedures

A test measures an individualsability, knowledge, or

performance

A test measures a given domain

A test measures performance,but the results imply the test-

takers ability or, to use a term

common in the field of

test


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Assessment of learning (summative) is the use of a task or an activity to measure,

record, and report on a students level of achievement in regards to specific

learning expectations.

Logic:

provide the focus to improve student achievement

give everyone the information they need to improve student achievement

apply pressure needed to motivate teachers to work harder to teach and learn

Assessment for learning (formative) is the use of a task or an activity for the

purpose of determining student progress during a unit or block of instruction

Types and purposes of assessment

Proficiency test (almost summative and norm-referenced)

test overall language ability of students at varying level

traditionally consisted of multiple-choice items on grammar, vocab, readingcomprehension, and aural comprehension

not limited to any one course/curriculum/single skill

sufficient for gate-keeping role they play of accepting or denying someone

passage into the next level of education

cth: Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL test)

Achievement tests (summative)

usually administered at mid- and end- point of the semester or academic year

generally based on the specific course content/on the course objectives

to see what a student has learned with regard to stated course outcomes

indicate what a student needs to continue to work on


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Placement test (formative)

to assess students level of language ability for placement in an appropriate

course or class

indicates the level at which a student will learn most effectively main aim: to create groups, which are homogeneous in level

Test content: come in many varietiesassessing comprehension and

production, multiple-choice, gap-filling, etc.

Aptitude test

designed to measure capacity or general ability to learn a foreign language a

priori (before taking a course) and ultimate predicted success in that

undertaking

designed to apply to the classroom learning of any language

Diagnostic test

to diagnose aspects of a language that a student needs to develop or that a

course should include difference between achievement testachievement test analyze the extent to

which students have acquired language features taught; diagnostic test

should elicit information on what students need to work on in the future

more detailed, subcategorizes information on the learner

based on failure

Progress test (formative

measure the progress that students are making towards defined course or

programme goals

administered at various stages

cover a smaller amount of material and assess fewer objectives


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norm-referenced test (NRT)untuk summative

in NRTs, an individual test-takers score is interpreted in relation to a mean

(average score), median (middle score), standard deviation (extent of various

scores), and/or percentile rank

purpose: place test-takers along a mathematical continuum in rank order

reported back to the test-taker in the form of numerical score (baka biasa)

used for summative assessment

criterion-referenced test (CRT)untuk formative

the collection of information about the student progress/achievement in

relation to a specified criterion designed to provide feedback to test-takers, mostly in form of grades, on

specific course or lesson objectives

citeriabased on learning outcomes or objectives

baka ba coursework

Objective test

Types: multiple-choice, true-false, matching, fill-in

Receptive/selective response

supply type of response rather

than creating a response

Stem (the body of the item that

presents a stimulus)

question/assignment in an item

must short and simplemust

not easily give away right

Key (correct response)either

correct or the best one

Options/alternativesa list of

possible responses3-5 to

choose from

Distractors (disturber)to

distract students from selecting

the correct answer


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Weakness of objective test:

may limit beneficial washback

enable cheating

challenging to write good items

technique strictly limits what can be tested

only recognition knowledge

encourage guessingconsider score

guidelines to design items

design each item to measure a single objective

state both stem and options as simply and directly as possible

subjective test

evaluated by giving opinion

include essay, short-answer, vocab

provide more opportunity to test-takers to demonstrate their understanding

test-takers may provide unpredictable alternatives/acceptable responses

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Note (Language Assessment)