Assessment

In The Name Of the Most High

Chabahar Maritime University

Faculty of Humanities

Assessment

Professor:

Dr. Khoshsima

Student:

Z. Dehghan

May 2014

New paradigm

1.Focus on language

2.teacher-centred

3.Isolated skills

4.Emphasis on product

5.One answer, one-way correctness

6.Tests that test

1.Focus on communication

2.learner-centered

3.Integrated skills

4.Emphasis on process

5.open-ended, multiple solutions

6.Tests that also teach

Old Paradigm

.

First paperBy: Huerta-

Macias

How can we assess our students in a way that consistently reflects their true ability in the second language?

An alternative assessment to traditional forms of assessment has been proposed.

Alternative assessment

Authentic assessment

Informal assessment

Alternative assessment focuses more on measuring learners

ability to use language holistically in real-life situations and

is typically carried out continuously over a period of time.

Discussing about :

A number of alternative assessment procedures that

second language teachers can use in their writing class.

A variety of techniques of giving feedback on student

writing.

.

Second paper:Andrea H.

penaflorida

Alternative assessment:Responses to commonly Asked Questions

Alternative assessment has been described as an alternative to standardized testing and all of the problems found with such testing.

A variety of labels has been used to distinguish it from traditional, standardized testing.

Alternative Assessment Procedures

Performance assessment

Authentic assessment

Portfolio assessment

Informal assessment

Situated assessment

• Alternative assessment is different from traditional testing in that it actually asks students to show what they can do.

• Students are evaluated on what they integrated and producedrather than on what they are able to recall and reproduce.

• The main goal of alternative assessment is to

“gather evidence about how students approaching,Processing , and completing real life tasks in a particulardomain.”

• Alternative assessment provides alternatives to traditional

testing:

1) It does not intrude on regular classroom activities.

2) Reflects the curriculum that is actually being

implemented in the classroom

3) Provides information on the strengths and weaknesses of

each individual student

4) Provides multiple indices that can be used to gauge

student progress

5) It is more multiculturally sensitive and free of norm ,

linguistic and cultural biases.

Alternative assessment includes a variety of instruments that can be adapted to varying situations.

Use of checklists

Journals

Reading logs

Videos of role play

Audiotapes of discussions

Self-evaluation questionnaires

Work samples

Anecdotal records

Validity , and Objectivity

The following questions focus on these issues:

Does the test measure what is supposed to measure?

Is the test consistent in its measurement?

Is the test unbiased?

Trustworthy

• An instrument is deemed to be trustworthy if it has credibility and auditability

Truth-valueConsistency

Suggestions to ensure the existence of reliability in alternative assessment:

Design multiple tasks that lead to the same outcome.

Use trained judge, working with clear criteria.

Monitor periodically to ensure that raters use criteria and standards in a consistent manner.

Reliability, or consistency, in qualitative research is often ensured through yet another means , triangulation.

In qualitative research, triangulation refers to:

“The combination of methodologies to strengthen a study design.”

When applied to alternative assessment , triangulation refers to the collection of data or information from three different sources or perspectives.

Family

Student

Teacher

Triangulation of Data: Alternative assessment for ESL Public School Class

Another concern that is often raised with respect to alternative assessment is the lack of objectivity.

Even though , standardized tests are described as objective , the notion of objectivity has been challenged.

A standardized test merely represents agreement among a numberof people on scoring procedures, format, and content for thatspecific test. These individuals are not really objective; they justcollectively share the same biases.

There is no reason to consider alternative assessment as being any less objective.

Nontraditional or Alternative forms of assessment

• In terms of pedagogical concerns , this paper considers the following nontraditional or alternative forms of assessment of classroom-based writing:

Portfolio assessment

Protocol analysis

Learning logs

Journal entries

Dialogue journals

Portfolio assessment:

Portfolio is defined as:

A cumulative collection of the work students have done.

A typical writing portfolio contains the student's totalwriting output to represent his or her overallperformance. but it may also contain only a selection ofworks which the student has chosen for the teacher toevaluate.

Portfolio collections may also serve as responses to student writing . Conferencing is an important component of portfolio assessment.

Students, through conferencing and keeping a portfolio, experience making real-life decisions as well as decisions about schoolwork.

This is a real step toward learner autonomy.

No system of assessment is as perfect as portfolio assessment.

They are also free to select from their work . This shows that portfolios may be used as a holistic process for evaluating course work and for promoting learner autonomy.

Protocol analysis

• Protocol analysis is known as:

Composing aloud protocol

Think aloud activity

Learning logs:

Learning logs help teachers see what their students are learning.

In a learning log, students write on the knowledge they have gained from studying in their writing classes.

Journal entries:

Journal entries may be used as an informal means of assessment by the teacher because they are personal and intimate.

Dialogue journal:

They are written conversations between teacher and student over a period of time.

Their goal is to communicate in writing, to exchange ideas and information free of the concern for form.

Similarities between

Journal entries & Dialogue journals

Self-Response

Peer Response

Teacher Response

Looking good is the

best revenge.

-Ivana Trump