Welcome to………

Steve Darn

27.04.2013

Professional Development2

Testing for the Real World

Professional Development3

Session aims

To consider how testing and assessment reflect changes in the way English is taught.

To consider how far testing and assessment contribute towards the real-world purpose of language learning.

To suggest some alternative types of assessment and discuss when and why you would use them

Professional Development4

A Test on Testing

10. How have you felt while doing this test?

Professional Development5

Things have changed

Accuracy Fluency

Language Skills

Teacher-centred Student-centred

Separation Integration

Examination subject Life-skill

Product Process

Professional Development6

Assessing Process

Professional Development7

Balance – Summative vs Formative

Summative

Tests

Formative

Participation

Homework

Projects

Presentations

Assignments

Portfolios

The good language teacher needs to have an understanding of, and an ability to use, a wide repertoire of test instruments and assessment procedures. The effective evaluation of learner performance in language programmes does not require teachers to make a choice between testing and assessment, but to use the right combination of both.Dave Allen 2003

Professional Development8

Test as you Teach

Professional Development9

A Writing Test

Visuals – for stimulation

Short reading text – for input

Matching task – for vocabulary

Error correction task – for structures

Sequencing task – for organizing

Guidelines – for task completion

Writing task

Professional Development10

Types of test

Is the yellow circle in the right-hand flower bigger?

An Optical Illusion

What is the Norm?

Professional Development13

Changing the Norm – are you for the high-jump?

2.28m / 1.86m

Professional Development14

The Forgotten Test

Today, English proficiency can hardly be thought of as

an economic advantage at all. It is certainly no longer

a marker of the elite. Instead, it is increasingly a basic

skill needed for the entire workforce, in the same way

that literacy was transformed in the last two centuries

from an elite privilege to a basic requirement for informed citizenship.

The English Proficiency Index 2010

Professional Development15

Aptitude

• Aptitude has been poorly regarded among language teachers because it has been perceived as anti-egalitarian.

• The bulk of language teaching materials have assumed that all learners are the same.

Professional Development16

Can you learn a new language?

• “ba” is “one” • “baba” is “two” • “dee” is “three” • “tu” is “twenty” • “ti” is “thirty” • “tu-ba” is “twenty-one” in this language -- because “tu” is

twenty and “ba” is one. • “ti-ba” is “thirty-one “ – because “ti” is thirty and “ba” is one.

Professional Development17

No cheating!!!!!!

Professional Development18

Of course you can!

• a. thirty-one (31) • b. thirty-three (33) • c. two (2) • d. twenty-three (23)

Professional Development19

MLAT

• Number Learning

measures memory as well as an “auditory alertness” factor which would affect auditory comprehension of a foreign language.

• Phonetic Script

measures sound-symbol association ability, which is the ability to learn correlations between a speech sound and written symbols.

• Spelling Clues/Hidden Words

tests vocabulary knowledge of English as well as sound-symbol association ability.

• Words in Sentences

measures sensitivity to grammatical structure without using any grammatical terminology.

• Paired Associates

measures rote memorization ability

Professional Development20

Contacting the Real World – Mission Control!

Mission 1: Finding a penpal

Aims• To introduce yourself through a piece of personalised writing

with a good degree of accuracy• To have your poster ‘published’ in two IH schools• To set up a contact through which you can use English on a

regular basis for a real communicative reason

Professional Development21

A real use for Facebook

Prepare a poster with a picture of yourself and some information about you.

Include the following information:

1. Introduce yourself

2. Say you are from Turkey and what your level is3. Say something about your hobbies, job etc4. Say that you are looking for a penpal and also say why you want one5. Include your email address so that your new penpal can contact you!

• Go to our website: http://www.ilsizmir.com/• Click on ‘Şubelerimiz’• Choose TWO cities from the list of schools.• Email your poster to your teacher and say which cities you want your poster to

go to.• Your teacher will send your poster.

Professional Development22

Mission Accomplished – Newcastle, Milan, New York, La Spezia, Auckland, Dublin….

Professional Development23

More Missions

• Arrange a night out by phone• E-mail a hotel in an English speaking country and enquire

about prices• Write a hotel review and post it to tripadvisor.com.• Write your favourite recipe and post it on mydish.co.uk and/or

you make a video and post it on YouTube.com.

I'm very happy now:))it's fantastic:)

Professional Development24

Conclusions

• A more ‘critical thinking’ approach to assessment• A closer relationship between teaching and

testing• More attention to acceptable standards• More attention to the purpose of testing• The development of alternative means of

assessment

Professional Development25

Thank you for listening

stevedarn@gmail.com

www.stevedarn.com