Summative Assessment: Testing

In this blog entry, I talk about what it is language assessment, how we categorize it, types of tests, and the guiding principles that govern testing design, focusing more on validity and reliability. You will be able to find concept maps and a video, which take form of an interview, explain what I already mentioned.

Introduction to issues in language assessment

When we hear the word assessment, we often think about the pencil-and-paper test that happens at the end of the course that makes students really stressed because, now the teacher is going to know how much they don’t know and he or she is probably going to fail them. But assessment is so much more than tests. Actually, assessment includes a wide range of activities and tasks that teachers use to evaluate students’ progress and growth during the course, and their development at the end of it.

The following map is based on the reading Introduction to Issues in Language Assessment and Terminology.

First of all, we need to define some terms. Evaluation is the widest basis for the gathering of information in education and it concerns analyzing all the factors that influence the teaching-learning process, such as syllabus objectives, course design and materials. Assessment is part of evaluation; it refers to the different ways that teachers gather information about learners’ language ability and their achievements. And last but not least, testing is a subcategory of assessment, and it is a systematic, formal procedure to collect information about students’ behavior.

We, as teachers, have the responsibility of choosing the best option of testing for a particular group of students in a particular context, so it is useful to categorize tests by purpose, type or stage of the course.

We have six different types of test:

·         Placement tests. They assess students level of language and to position students in an appropriate course. This helps to have classes that are homogeneous in level proficiency.

·         Aptitude tests. They measure our general ability or capacity to learn a foreign language, an example of this type of test is the MLAT, which is the Modern Language Aptitude Test developed by Caroll and Sapon in 1958.

·         Diagnostic tests. They help to identify areas in which a student needs further help.

·         Progress tests. They measure the development that students are making during the course.

·         Achievement test. They are similar to progress tests because they also determine what students have learned regarding to course outcomes and they are typically applied at mid- and end-point of the course.

·         Proficiency test. They are not based on a particular curriculum or program, and they asses the language ability at varying levels. An example of this test is the TOEFL, which measure English language proficiency of foreign students.

There are other ways of labeling test, for example Objective Tests  which are scored by comparing a student’s responses with an established set of correct responses on an answer key, with this labeling test the qualifier doesn’t require particular knowledge in the examined area. On the other hand is Subjective Test that requires scoring by personal judgment so, in this case, the human element is very important.

There are Criterion-Referenced Tests (CRTs), which are usually developed to measure mastery of well-defined instructional objectives specific to a particular program; according to Brown, the purpose of this test is to measure how much learning the student has achieved.  Norm-Referenced Tests (NRT) also called Standardized Tests are designed to gauge language abilities, -based on Brown, - the purpose of an NRTs are to spread out a continuum of scores. Test results are interpreted with reference to the performance of a given large group of students who are similar to the individuals for whom the test was designed.

Summative Assessment is used at the end of the course to determine if students have achieved the objectives set out in the curriculum. Formative Assessment aims to use the results to improve instruction, so feedback is provided to students during the course.

High Stakes Tests are those in which the results are likely to have a big impact in our lives, for example TOEFL; and finally the Low Stakes Tests are those that have a small impact in our lives, a clear example of these are the class test and short quizzes.

Is important to understand that designing a test is highly complex, and there are basic principles that are essential when doing so. The guiding principles that govern testing design are

• ·         Usefulness
• ·         Validity
• ·         Reliability
• ·         Practicality
• ·         Washback
• ·         Authenticity
• ·         Transparency
• ·         Security

To have a better understanding of two of these principles, which are validity and reliability, here you have a concept map of each one. The maps are based on the information of articles about reliability and validity.

This is the map for test validity:

And this is the map for test reliability:

As we can see, there are a lot of factors to take  into consideration when designing a test, that go from the situation that it is created for, to the purpose that it serves, to the group of people that it is evaluating, and many other ones. You can’t take this matter lightly, and because It is an extremely complex work, it helps to know what type of test you are creating and the principles that it has to follow. 

The maps were creted by: 
Adriana Aquino
Diana Jiménez López
Maria Juana Reyes Parada

Video: Talking about Testing

 Why do teachers make quizzes? Why do schools create high-stakes tests for students? Why do teachers create low-stakes test during the course?  The answer seems obvious: to see what they have learned. However, tests serve many other purposes in schools beyond just helping assigning a grade according to the result of the student. Designing and doing a test is a really tricky matter because testing can measure successful memorization of facts or the effective application of critical thinking skills.  Although test-taking can cause anxiety or stress in some students, the desire to do well  can help keep students motivated, but it is our task to keep them motivated not just to get a good grade but also to be excited about learning .
 
In the following video, which takes the form of an interview, my classmates and I are talking about testing, types of tests, how tests are labeled, among other things. We based on the information that was already mentioned at the beginnig of this blog entry.

As a conclusion, assessment is an integral part of instruction, as it determines whether or not the goals of education are being achieved.  Assessment inspires teachers to ask themselves questions like:  "Are we teaching what we think we are teaching?" "Are students learning what they are supposed to be learning?" "Is there a way to teach the subject better?". And making teachers ask themselves these questions is a pivotal task to see if they are meeting the curriculum objectives.

My experience doing the  video: 

I enjoyed doing this activity. We had to understand the information so it didn't sound so robotic when answering the question, and we had to practice so it seemed more natural. So at the end of the shooting of the video, the information was more stucked in my mind. And, as in the previous team vide, it was interesting and useful as a learning tool because everyone brought something different to the task. 

The video was created by:

Maria Juana Reyes Parada

Adriana Aquino

Diana Jiménez López