Lesson One

1. Lesson One Introduction: Teaching and Testing/Assessment

2. Contents • What is a test? • Why tests? • Problems of many tests • Qualities of a good test • Terms: measurement, test, evaluation, and assessment • Relationship between measurement, test, evaluation, and assessment • Relationship between test/ass.& teaching • Formative and summative assessment • Formal vs. informal assessment • Traditional vs. alternative assessment • Questions to think about • Homework

3. What Is a Test? • Unavoidable? • How tests make us feel much of the time? (sample test) • A necessary “evil”? • Anything positive about tests? • Definition: a method of measuring a person’s ability, knowledge, or performance in a given domain.

4. Sample Test Circle the correct answer. You have 3 minutes to complete this test. 1. polygene A. the first stratum of lower-order protozoa containing multiple gene B. a combination of two or more plastics to produce a highly durable material. C. one of a set of cooperating genes, each producing a small quantitative effect. D. any of a number of multicellular chromosomes.

5. Why Tests? 1. To gather information: • Achievement of learners • Selection among competitors • Comparison for levels/ranking • Examination/Evaluation on teaching methods • Identification of problem areas 2. To reinforce learning & to motivate students

6. Problems of Many Tests • Poor quality (cf. reliability) • Fail to measure accurately what is intended to be measured (cf. validity) • Not practical • A harmful effect on teaching/learning (i.e., harmful backwash)

7. Backwash (or Washback) • Definition: the effect of testing on teaching/learning (Bailey 3) • Harmful (negative) backwash: • e.g., a writing test with multiple-choice items • Beneficial (positive) backwash: • e.g., an oral test

8. A Good Test Should … • be valid • be reliable • be practical • have beneficial backwash • be authentic

9. Measurement • Quantifies the characteristics (both physical and mental) of persons • e.g.: weight, height, motivation, aptitude, intelligence • Involves both tests and non-tests: test scores, ratings

10. Test • Traditional paper-and-pencil tests • A procedure designed to get a specific sample of a person’s ability at a given time (so time-constrained, a limited sample of behavior) • A measurement instrument

11. Evaluation • Quantitative • Numbers involved; e.g., scores • Qualitative • Analyze data; e.g., letters of reference • Systematic gathering of information for decision making • Determination of adequacy

12. Assessment • “a set of processes through which we make judgments about a learner’s level of skills and knowledge”(Nuna 1990) • Whole situation included over time • An on-going process • Includes multiple samples of behavior, not just one single judgment or test

13. Assessment Measurement (test) Measurement (non-test) Evaluation

14. Evaluation, Measurement & Test • Not all measures are tests, not all tests are evaluative, and not all evaluation involves either measurement or tests.

15. Relationship between Teaching & Testing/Assessment • A partnership relationship • Testing not simply follow teaching • Testing should be supportive of good teaching & have a corrective influence on bad teaching • Depending on purposes of the test: • To reinforce learning, motivate students • A mans of assessing Ss’ performance

16. Relationship between Test/Assessment & Teaching Tests Assessment Teaching (Brown 5)

17. Teacher’s Role in Testing • Write better tests themselves • Myth: a qualified T vs. a good test maker • Put pressure on professional testers to improve their tests • E.g., TWE (Test of Written Eng.) in TOEFL

18. Formative & Summative Assessment (1) • Formative Assessment: • Evaluating Ss in the process of “forming” their competences and skills • Goal: helping them to continue the growth process (i.e., future continuation or formation of learning; on-going development of their language) • Key: the delivery (by the teacher) and internalization (by the student) of appropriate feedback on performance • E.g., most classroom assessment

19. Formative & Summative Assessment (2) • Summative assessment: • To measure or summarize what a S has grasped at the end of a course/unit • Not necessarily point the way to future progress • E.g., final exams, general proficiency exams

20. Formal vs. Informal Assessment (1) • Formal assessment: • Systematic, planned • All tests are formal assessments, but not all formal assessment is testing. • E.g., journal, portfolio = formal assessment, but are not “tests”

21. Formal vs. Informal Assessment (2) • Informal assessment: • Embedded in classroom tasks • To elicit performance without recording results and making fixed judgments about a student’s competence. • E.g., marginal comments on papers

22. Traditional vs. alternative assessment (1) • Traditional assessment: • One-shot, timed • Usually decontextualized • Summative • Product-oriented • Focus on the “right” answer

23. Traditional vs. alternative assessment (2) • Alternative assessment: • Continuous long-term assessment, untimed • Cintextualized communicative • Formative • Process-oriented • Open-ended, creative answers

24. Questions to Think about • Are all tests summative? • Is it possible to convert tests into “learning experiences”? • Again, is testing a necessary evil? • What can we use tests for?

25. Homework • Read Chapter One in both textbooks (Brown; Bailey) • Preview: Brown chapter 3 (pp. 43-47); Bailey chapters 3 & 6. • Q to think about: • Why is the course called Language Assessment instead of Language Testing?