Assessing listening

          

September 22nd, 2011 

Meanwhile travellers are waiting for their transportation they sit into the boarding room. Listen carefully to the hour for each flight departure and number of gate. At this point travellers need to pay much attention mostly when they at another country with a different language.

In an ESL classroom students require to learn how to listen and understand what is heard before he or she can speak. For that reason there are fundamental aspects to consider:

1. Model Listening.

a- Bottom-up processing which stands for the comprehension listener obtains from braking down information.

b- Top-down listening: in this process listener uses personal background knowledge of a specific situation to make sense what is heard.

         2.Approaches to Listening Assessment

A- Discrete point approach: listen information and carry it down to components, assess it separately

B- Integrative approach: Assess listener ability to use several components same time.  

C- Communicative approach: Assess listener ability to comprehend and use components in a specific context.

 Consideration in Designing Listening Task

A. Background Knowledge.Listener´s prior knowledge.

B. Test Content. Specification of the Test.

C. Texts. Convert script in oral material.

D. Vocabulary. List of words to understand a text.

E. Test Structure. The outset of the test.

F. Formats. Teach the situation then introduce it in the test.

G. Items Writing. Refer to formats and text to be included 
in a test. 

H. Timing. Length of the test includes pre-reading. 

I. Skill Contamination. Use of other language skills 
to answer question.

Assessing Writing

Assessing Writing

 

SEPTEMBER 15^TH, 2011

A station hostess attends travellers at her/his counter, for them to check in at the airline. The station hostess fills the documents for baggages and suitcases weight.

Then handing the boarding passes, seat numbers and baggages tags to the client. These are a set of writen form requirements for travellers who expect to fly with an airline.

Writing ability isn´t only important it is necessary, because along with reading they are expected for a student academic development to be effective.

Constant writing permits teacher a beneficial washback because it encourages research.

  As station hostess gathers information for travellers, putting their information and baggage together, teacher’s desire is to have their students putting ideas together in their writings.

The approaches to writing assessment are two:

•  Indirect measure: refers to student´s correct use of writing.
•  Direct measure: refers to student´s ability to communicate through written form.

     RUBRIC        PROMPT

                          

    EXPECTED RESPONSE   POST-TASk EVALUATION         

                  

                                  

·        In this case the rubrics correspond to the instructions given to carry out a task.

·        Writing prompt has to do with stimulus students must respond to. This element also divided in three formats:

1. Base prompt: state the entire task in simple terms.

2. Framed prompt: It presents a situation that stands as a frame for interpretation.

3. Text-based prompt: It uses a text for students to respond or utilize in writing.

Issues in Writing Assessment

·        Time Allocation: time to complete writing task.  

·        Process versus Product: test in which the whole process from brainstorming to final product is assess.

·   Use of Technology: The access to computer, online dictionaries and others.

·        Topic restriction: The advantage of allowing students to select alternatives to do their writing task.

Techniques for Assessing Writing

·        Free writing: For this technique to be done it requires manipulation of content provided in a chart or diagram.

·    Guided writing: Read a situation then start writing a planned response base upon personal background knowledge and also background knowledge of the course.

Note: Examples of authentic assessments:

Student- Teacher Conference: Conferences between teachers and students to learn about their writing habits.

Self-Assessment: Students personal writing assessment of in the form of dialogue journal and learning logs.

Peer Assessment: Receive feedback by learning to evaluate the work of classmates using checklist, scoring rubrics and others.  

Portfolio-Based Assessment: Collection students writing over time.