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Demystifying Second Language Assessment

Demystifying Second Language Assessment. Shawna Williams BC TEAL Annual Conference May 24, 2014. Agenda. Introduction Assessment terminology – definitions Principles of Assessment. My assessment history…. Language Assessment: Principles and Classroom Practices. Assessment Terminology.

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Demystifying Second Language Assessment

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  1. Demystifying Second Language Assessment Shawna Williams BC TEAL Annual Conference May 24, 2014

  2. Agenda • Introduction • Assessment terminology – definitions • Principles of Assessment

  3. My assessment history…

  4. Language Assessment: Principles and Classroom Practices

  5. Assessment Terminology

  6. Assessment Terminology Assessment ≠ Testing

  7. Assessment is… • “appraising or estimating the level or magnitude of some attribute of a person.” (Mousavi, 2009) • “an ongoing process of collecting information about a given object of interest according to procedures that are systematic and substantively grounded.” (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010)

  8. Assessment • “A good teacher never ceases to assess students, whether those assessments are incidental or intended.” (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010)

  9. Assessment and Learning Teaching Assessment Measurement Tests Evaluation (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010, p. 6)

  10. Function of Assessment Informal Formal • Incidental, unplanned comments • Coaching • Impromptu feedback •  on homework • Nonjudgmental • Systematic and planned • Give T and Ss appraisal of achievement • Tests and assignments

  11. Function of Assessment Formative Summative • “evaluating students in the process of ‘forming’ their competencies and skills with the goal of helping them to continue that growth process” • feedback on performance • future continuation of learning • “aims to measure, or summarize, what the student has grasped” • end of course or unit • looking back and taking stock (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010, p.7)

  12. Five Principles of Assessment How do you know if an assessment task is effective, appropriate, useful, or . . . “good”?

  13. Practicality Reliability Validity Authenticity Washback

  14. A PRACTICAL TEST . . .

  15. A PRACTICAL TEST . . . • budgetary limits • appropriate time constraints • clear directions for administration • appropriately utilizes human resources • does not exceed available material resources • considers time and effort for design and scoring (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010, p. 26)

  16. A RELIABLE TEST . . . =

  17. A RELIABLE TEST . . . • consistent across two or more administrations • clear directions for scoring/evaluation • uniform rubrics for scoring/evaluation • consistent application of rubrics by scorer • unambiguous to the test-taker (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010, p. 27)

  18. Reliability con’t • Rater Reliability • Inter-Rater Reliability • Intra-Rater Reliability

  19. Reliability con’t • Rater Reliability • Inter-Rater Reliability • Intra-Rater Reliability • Student-Related Reliability • Test Administration Reliability • Test Reliability

  20. A VALID TEST . . .

  21. A VALID TEST . . . • measures exactly what it proposes to measure • does not measure irrelevant or “contaminating” variables • relies on empirical evidence (performance) • performance that samples the test’s criterion (objective) • useful, meaningful information about test-taker’s ability • supported by theoretical rationale or argument (Brown& Abeywickrama, 2010, p. 30)

  22. Validity con’t • Content-Related Evidence • Criterion-Related Evidence • Construct-Related Evidence • Consequential Validity (Impact) • Face Validity

  23. AN AUTHENTIC TEST . . .

  24. AN AUTHENTIC TEST . . . • language as natural as possible • items are contextualized rather than isolated • meaningful, relevant, interesting topics • thematic organization • real-world tasks (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010, p. 37)

  25. A TEST THAT PROVIDES BENEFICIAL WASHBACK . . .

  26. A TEST THAT PROVIDES BENEFICIAL WASHBACK . . . • positively influences teachers’ teaching • positively influences learners’ learning • learners can adequately prepare • feedback for language development • more formative than summative • conditions for peak performance (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010, p. 38)

  27. Applying Principles to Creation of Assessment Tools • Practical test procedures? • Test is reliable? • Rater reliability? • Content validity? • Impact has been accounted for? • Procedure is “biased for best”? • Test tasks are authentic? • Test offers beneficial washback? • See Brown & Abeywickrama, Chpt. 2

  28. Questions or Comments? Shawna Williams swilliams@listn.info

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