Assessing
Reading
TYPES
(GENRES) OF READING
Each
type or genre of written text has its own set of governing rules and conventions.
A reader must be able to anticipate those conventions in order to process
meaning efficiently With an extraordinary number of genres present in any
literate culture, the reader's ability to process texts must be very
sophisticated. Consider the following abridged list of common genres, which
ultimately form part of the specifications for assessments of reading ability.
Genres of reading
1.
Academic reading general interest
articles (in magazines, newspapers, etc.) technical reports (e.g., lab
reports), professional journal articles reference material (dictionaries, etc.)
textbooks, these essays, papers test directions editorials and opinion writing
2.
Job-related reading messages (e.g.,
phone messages) letters/emails memos (e.g., interoffice) reports (e.g., job
evaluations, project reports) schedules, labels, signs, announcements forms,
applications, questionnaires financial documents (bills, invoices, etc.)
directories (telephone, office, etc.)
manuals, directions
3.
Personal reading newspapers and
magazines letters, emails, greeting cards, invitations messages, notes, lists
schedules (train, bus, plane, etc.) recipes, menus, maps, calendars
advertisements (commercials, want ads) novels, short stories, jokes, drama,
poetry financial documents (e.g., checks, tax forms, loan applications) forms,
questionnaires, medical reports, immigration documents comic strips, cartoons.
MICROSKILLS,
MACROSKILLS, AND STRATEGIES FOR READING
Aside
from attending to genres of text, the skills and strategies for accomplishing
reading emerge as a crucial consideration in the assessment of reading ability.
Ellie micro- and macroskills below
represent the spectrum of possibilities for objectives in the assessment of
reading comprehension.
Micro- and macroskil[s
for reading comprehension
Ø Microskills
1.
Discriminate among the distinctive
graphemes and orthographic patterns of English.
2.
Retain chunks of language of different
lengths in short-term memory,
3.
Process writing at an efficient rate of
speed to suit the purpose.
4.
Recognize a core of words, and interpret
word order patterns and their significance.
5.
Recognize grammatical word classes (nouns,
verbs, etc.), systems (e.g., tense, agreement, pluralization), patterns, rules,
and elliptical forms.
6.
Recognize that a particular meaning may
be expressed in different grammatical forms.
7.
Recognize cohesive devices in written
discourse and their role in signaling the relationship between and among
clauses.
Ø Macroskills
8.
Recognize the rhetorical forms of
written discourse and their significance for interpretation.
9.
Recognize the communicative functions of
written texts, according to form and purpose.
10.
Infer context that is not explicit by
using background knowledge.
11.
From described events, ideas, etc.,
infer links and connections between events, deduce causes and effects, and
detect such relations as main idea, supporting idea, new information, given information,
generalization, and exemplification.
12.
Distinguish between literal and implied
meanings.
13.
Detect culturally specific references
and interpret them in a context of the appropriate cultural schemata.
14.
Develop and use a battery of reading
strategies, such as scanning and skimming, detecting discourse markers,
guessing the meaning of words from context. and activating schemata for the
interpretation of texts.
TYPES
OF READING
1.
Perceptive. In keeping with the set of
categories specified for listening comprehension, similar specifications are
offered here, except with some differing terminology to capture the uniqueness
of reading. Perceptive reading tasks involve attending to the components of
larger stretches of discourse: letters, words, punctuation, and other graphemic
symbols. Bottom-up processing is implied.
2.
Selective. This category is largely an
artifact of assessment formats. In order to ascertain one's reading recognition
of lexical, grammatical, or discourse features of language within a very short
stretch of language, certain typical tasks are used: picture-cued tasks,
matching, true/false, multiple-choice, etc. Stimuli include sentences, brief
paragraphs, and simple charts and graphs. Brief responses are intended as well.
A combination of bottom-up and top-down processing may be used.
3.
Interactive. Included among interactive
reading types are stretches of lan guage of several paragraphs to one page or
more in which the reader must, in a psycholinguistic sense, interact with the
text. That is, reading is a process of negotiating meaning; the reader brings
to the text a set of schemata for understanding it, and intake is the product
of that interaction, Typical genres that lend themselves to interactive reading
are anecdotes, short narratives and descriptions, excerpts from longer texts,
questionnaires, memos, announcements, directions, recipes, and the like.nie
focus of an interactive task is to identify relevant features (lexical,
symbolic, grammatical, and discourse) within texts of moderately short length
with the objective of retaining the information that is processed. Top-down
processing is typical of such tasks, although some instances of bottom-up
performance may be necessary.
4.
Extensive. Extensive reading. as
discussed in this book, applies to texts of more than a page, up to and
including professional articles, essays. technical reports, short stories, and
books.
DESIGNING
ASSESSMENT TASKS: PERCEPTIVE READING
Reading
Aloud
The
test-taker sees separate letters, words, and/or short sentences and reads
aloud, one by one, in the presence of an administrator. Since the assessment
reading comprehension, any recognizable oral approximation of the response is
considered correct.
Written
Response
The
same stimuli are presented, and the test-taker's task is to reproduce the probe
in writing. Because of the transfer across different skills here, evaluation of
the testtaker's response must be carefully treated. If an error occurs, make
sure you determine its source; what might be assumed to be a writing error, for
example, may actually be a reading error, and vice versa.
Multiple-Choice
Multiple-choice
responses are not only a matter of choosing one of four or five pos. Sible
answers. Other formats, some of which are especially useful at the low levels
of reading, include same/different, circle the answer, true/false, choose the
letter, and matching. Here are some possibilities.
Picture-Cued
Items
Test-takers
are shown a picture, such as the one on the next page, along with a written
text and are given one of a number of possible tasks to perform.
DESIGNING
ASSESSMENT TASKS: SELECTIVE READING
Multiple-Choice
(for Form-Focused Criteria)
By
far the most popular method of testing a reading knowledge of vocabulary and
grammar is the multiple-choice format, mainly for reasons of practicality: it
is easyto administer and can be scored
quickly The most straightforward multiple-choice items may have little context,
but might serve as a vocabulary or grammar check.
Matching
Tasks
At
this selective level of reading, the test-taker's task is simply to respond
correctly, which makes matching an appropriate format. The most frequently
appearing criterion in matching procedures is vocabulary.
Editing
Tasks
Editing
for grammatical or rhetorical errors is a widely used test method for assessing
linguistic competence in reading. The TOEFLS and many other tests employ this
technique with the argument that it not only focuses on grammar but also
introduces a simulation of the authentic task of editing, or discerning errors
in written passages. Its authenticity may be supported if you consider proof
reading as a real-world skill that is being tested. Here is a typical set of
examples of editing.
Picture-Cued
Tasks
In
the previous section we looked at picture-cued tasks for perceptive recognition
of symbols and words. Pictures and photographs may be equally well utilized for
examining ability at the selective level. Several types of picture-cued methods
are commonly used.
1.
Test-takers read a sentence or passage
and choose one of four pictures that is being described. The sentence (or
sentences) at this level is more complex.
2.
Test-takers read a series of sentences
or definitions, each describing a Iabeled part of a picture or diagram. Their
task is to identify each labeled item. In the following diagram, test-takers do
not necessarily know each term, but by reading the definition they are able to
make an identification.
Gap-Filling
Tasks
Many
of the multiple-choice tasks described above can be converted into gap-filling or
"fill-in-the-blank," items in which the test-taker's response is to
write a word phrase. An extension of simple gap-filling tasks is to create
sentence completion items where test-takers read part of a sentence and then
complete it by writing phrase.
DESIGNING
ASSESSMENT TASKS; INTERACTIVE READING
Cloze
Tasks
One
of the most popular types of reading assessment task is the cloze procedure. The
word cloze was coined by educational psychologists to capture the Gestalt
psychological concept of "closure," that is, the ability to fill in
gaps in an incomplete image (visual, auditory, or cognitive) and supply (from
background schemata) omitted details. Cloze tests are usually a minimum of two
paragraphs in length in order to account for discourse expectancies. They can
be constructed relatively easily as long as the specifications for choosing
deletions and for scoring are clearly defined. Typically every seventh word
(plus or minus two) is deleted (known as fixed-ratio deletion), but many cloze
test designers instead use a rational deletion procedure of choosing deletions
according to the grammatical or discourse functions of the words.
Impromptu
Reading Plus Comprehension Questions
If
cloze testing is the most-researched procedure for assessing reading, the
tional "Read a passage and answer some questions" technique is
undoubted* oldest and the most common. Virtually every proficiency test uses
the forms, one would rarely consider assessing reading without some component
of the ment involving impromptu reading and responding to questions.
Short-Answer
Tasks
Multiple-choice
items are difficult to construct and validate, and classroom teachers rarely
have time in their busy schedules to design such a test. A popular alternativeto
multiple-choice questions following reading passages is the age-old
short-answer format. A reading passage is presented. and the test-taker reads
questions that must be answered in a sentence or two. Questions might cover the
same specifications indicated above for the TOEFL reading, but be worded in
question form.
Editing
(Longer Texts)
The
previous section of this chapter (on selective reading) described editing tasks,
but there the discussion was limited to a list of unrelated sentences. each
presented with an error to be detected by the test-taker The same technique has
been applied successfully to longer passages of 200 to 300 words, Several
advantages are gained in the longer format
Scanning
Scanning
is a strategy used by all readers to find relevant information in a text.
Assessment of scanning is carried out by presenting test-takers with a text
(prose or something in a chart or graph format) and requiring rapid
identification of relevant bits of information. Possible stimuli include
a. a
one- to two-page news article,
b. an
essay, a chapter in a textbook,
c. a
technical report;
d. a
table or chart depicting some research findings, a menu, and
e. an
application form.
Ordering
Tasks
Students
always enjoy the activity of receiving little strips of paper, each with a
sentence on it, and assembling them into a story, sometimes called the
"strip story" technique. Variations on this can serve as an
assessment of overall global understanding of a story and of the cohesive
devices that signal the order of events or ideas.
Information
Transfer: Reading Charts, Maps, Graphs, Diagrams
Every
educated person must be able to comprehend charts, maps, graphs, calendars
diagrams, and the like. Converting such nonverbal input into comprehensible
intake requires not only an understanding of the graphic and verbal conventions
of medium but also a linguistic ability
to interpret that information to someone else Reading a map implies understanding
the conventions of map graphics, but it
often accompanied by telling someone where to turn, how far to go. etc
Scanning a menu requires an ability to
understand the structure of most menus as well as thx capacity to give an order
when the time comes. Interpreting the numbers on a stock market report involves
the interaction of understanding the numbers and of conveying that
understanding to others.
DESIGNING
ASSESSMENT TASKS: EXTENSIVE READING
Skimming
Tasks
Skimming
is the process of rapid coverage of reading matter to determine its gist or
main idea. It is a prediction strategy used to give a reader a sense of the
topic and purpose of a text, the organization of the text, the perspective or
point of view of the writer, its ease or difficulty, and/or its usefulness to
the reader. Of course skimming can apply to texts of less than one page, so it
would be wise not to confine this type of task just to extensive texts.
Summarizing
and Responding
As
you can readily see, a strict adherence to the criterion of assessing reading,
and trading only, implies consideration of only the first factor; the other
three pertain to writing performance. The first criterion is nevertheless a
crucial factor; otherwise the reader-writer could pass all three of the other
criteria with virtually no understanding of the text itself. Evaluation of the
reading comprehension criterion will necessity remain somewhat subjective
because the teacher will need to determine degrees of fulfillment of the
objective (see below for more about scoring this task).
Note-Taking
and Outlining
Finally,
a reader's comprehension of extensive texts may be assessed through an
evaluation of a process of note-taking and/or outlining. Because of the
difficulty Of controlling the conditions and time frame for both these
techniques, they rest firmly in the category of informal assessment. Their
utility is in the strategic training that learners gain in retaining
information through marginal notes that highlight key information or
organizational outlines that put supporting ideas into a visually manageable
framework. A teacher, perhaps in one-on-one conferences with students, can use
student notes/outlines as indicators of the presence or absence of effective
reading strategies, and thereby point the learners in positive directions.
Assessing
Writing
GENRES
OF WRITTEN IANGUAGE
The
same classification scheme is reformulated here to include the most common
genres that a second language writer might produce, within and beyond the
requirements of a curriculum. Even though this list is slightly shorter, you
should be aware of the surprising multiplicity of options of written genres
that second language learners need to acquire.
TYPES
OF WRITING PERFORMANCE
Four
categories of written performance that capture the range of written production
are considered here. Each category resembles the categories defined for the
other three skills, but these categories, as always, reflect the uniqueness of
the skill area.
1. Imitative.
To produce written language, the learner must attain skills in the fundamental,
basic tasks of writing letters, words, punctuation, and very brief sentences.
This category includes the ability to spell correctly and to perceive
phoneme-grapheme correspondences in the English spelling system. It is a level
at which learners are trying to master the mechanics of writing. At this stage,
form is the primary if not exclusive focus, while context and meaning are of
secondary concern
2. Intensive
(controlled). Beyond the fundamentals of imitative writing are skills in
producing appropriate vocabulary within a context, collocations and idioms and
correct grammatical features up to the length of a sentence. Meaning and cone
text are of some importance in determining correctness and appropriateness, but
most assessment tasks are more concerned with a focus on form, and are rather
strictly controlled by the test design.
3. Responsive.
Here, assessment tasks require learners to perform at a limited discourse
level, connecting sentences into a paragraph and creating a logically connected
sequence of two or three paragraphs. Tasks respond to pedagogical directives,
lists of criteria, outlines, and other guidelines
4. Extensive.
Extensive writing implies successful management of all processes and strategies
of writing for all purposes, up to the length of an essay term paper, a major research project report,
or even a thesis. Writers focus on achieving a purpose, organizing and
developing ideas logically, using details to support illustrate ideas,
demonstrating syntactic and lexical variety, and in many cases. gaging in the
process of multiple drafts to achieve a final product.
MICRO-
AND MACROSKILIS OF WRITING
Ø Microskills
1.
Produce graphemes and orthographic
patterns of English.
2.
Produce writing at an efficient rate of
speed to suit the purpose.
3.
Produce an acceptable core of words and
use appropriate word order patterns.
4.
Use acceptable grammatical systems
(e.g., tense, agreement, pluralization), patterns, and rules.
5.
Express a particular meaning in
different grammatical forms.
6.
Use cohesive devices in written
discourse.
Ø Macroskills
7.
Use the rhetorical forms and conventions
of written discourse.
8.
Appropriately accomplish the
communicative functions of written texts according to form and purpose,
9.
Convey links and connections between
events, and communicate such relations as main idea, supporting idea, new
information, given information, generalization, and exemplification.
10.
Distinguish between literal and implied
meanings when writing.
11.
Correctly convey culturally specific
references in the context of the written text.
12.
Develop and use a battery of writing
strategies, such as accurately assessing the audience's interpretation, using
prewriting devices, writing with fluency in the first drafts, using paraphrases
and synonyms, soliciting peer and instructor feedback, and using feedback for
revising and editing.
DESIGNING
ASSESSMENT TASKS: IMITATIVE WRITING
Tasks
in [Handl Writing Letters, Words, and Punctuation
First,
a comment should be made on the increasing use of personal and laptop computers
and handheld instruments for creating written symbols. Handwriting has the
potential of becoming a lost art as even very young children are more and more
likely to use a keyboard to produce writing. Making the shapes of letters and
other symbols is now more a question of learning typing skills than of training
the muscles of the hands to use a pen or pencil. Nevertheless, for all
practical purposes, handwriting remains a skill of paramount importance within
the larger domain of language assessment.
Spelling
Tasks and Detecting Phoneme— Grapheme Correspondences
1.
Spelling tests. In a traditional,
old-fashioned spelling test, the teacher dictates a simple list of words, one
word at a time, followed by the word in a sentence repeated again, with a pause
for test-takers to write the word. Scoring emphasize correct spelling. You can
help to control for listening errors by choosing words the students have
encountered before—words that they have spoken or heard their class.
2.
Picture-cued tasks. Pictures are
displayed with the objective of focusing familiar words whose spelling may be
unpredictable. Items are chosen according to the objectives of the assessment,
but this format is an opportunity to present some challenging words and word
pairs: boot/book, read/reed, bit/bite, etc.
3.
Multiple-choice techniques. Presenting
words and phrases in the form of 2 multiple-choice task risks crossing over
into the domain of assessing reading, but if the items have a follow-up writing
component, they can serve as formative reinforcement of spelling conventions.
4.
Matching phonetic symbols. If students
have become familiar with the phonetic alphabet, they could be shown phonetic
symbols and asked to write the correctly
spelled word alphabetically.
DESIGNING
ASSESSMENT TASKS: INTENSIVE (CONTROLLED) WRITING
Dictation
and Dicto-Comp
Dictation
is simply the rendition in writing of what one hears aurally, so it could be
classified as an imitative type of writing, especially since a proportion of
the testtaker's performance centers on correct spelling. Also, because the
test-taker must listen to stretches of discourse and in the process insert
punctuation, dictation of a paragraph
or more can arguably be classified as a controlled or intensive form of
writing.
Grammatical
Transformation Tasks
In
the heyday of structural paradigms of language teaching with slot-filler
techniques and slot substitution drills, the practice of making grammatical
transformations—orally or in writing—was very popular. To this day, language
teachers have also used this technique as an assessment task, ostensibly to
measure grammatical competence Numerous versions of the task are possible:
1. Change
the tenses in a paragraph.
2. Change
full forms of verbs to reduced forms (contractions). Change statements to yes/no or wb-questions.
3. Change
questions into statements.
4. Combine
two sentences into one using a relative pronoun.
5. Change
direct speech to indirect speech.
6. Change
from active to passive voice.
Picture-Cued
Tasks
A
variety of picture-cued controlled tasks have been used in English classroom'
around the world. The main advantage in this technique is in detaching the
alm ubiquitous reading and writing
connection and offering instead a nonverbal means to stimulate written
responses.
Vocabulary
Assessment Tasks
Most
vocabulary study is carried out through reading. A number of assessments
reading recognition of vocabulary were discussed in the previous chapter:
multiple choice techniques, matching, picture-cued identification, cloze
techniques, guessing the meaning of a word in context, etc. The major
techniques used to assess voce, vocabulary are (a) defining and (b) using a
word in a sentence. The latter is the mc authentic, but even that task is
constrained by a contrived situation in which t: test-taker, usually in a
matter of seconds, has to come up with an appropriate sentence, which may or
may not indicate that the test-taker "knows" the word.
Ordering
Tasks
One
task at the sentence level may appeal to those who are fond of word games and
puzzles: ordering (or reordering) a scrambled set of words into a correct
sentence Here is the way the item format appears. While this somewhat
inauthentic task generates writing performance and may said to tap into
grammatical word-ordering rules, it presents a challenge to test takers whose
learning styles do not dispose them to logical-mathematical problem solving. If
sentences are kept very simple with perhaps no more the four or five words, if
only one possible sentence can emerge, and if students have practiced the
technique in class, then some justification emerges. But once again in so many
writing techniques, this task involves as much, if not more, reading performance as writing.
Short-Answer
and Sentence Completion Tasks
Some
types of short-answer tasks were discussed in Chapter 8 because of the heavy
participation of reading performance in their completion. Such items range from
very simple and predictable to somewhat more elaborate responses. Look at the
range of possibilities. The reading-writing connection is apparent in the first
three item types but has less of an effect in the last three, where reading is
necessary in order to understand the directions but is not crucial in creating
sentences. Scoring on a 2-1-0 scale (a described above) may be the most
appropriate way to avoid self-arguing about the appropriateness of a response.
ISSUES
IN ASSESSING RESPONSIVE AND EXTENSIVE WRITING
Responsive
writing creates the opportunity for test-takers to offer an array of possible
creative responses within a pedagogical or assessment framework: test-taker are
"responding" to a prompt or assignment. Freed from the strict control
of intensive writing, learners can exercise a number of options in choosing
vocabulary, grammar, and discourse, but
with some constraints and conditions. Criteria now begin to include the
discourse and rhetorical conventions of paragraph structure and of connecting
two or three such paragraphs in texts of limited length. The learner is responsible
for accomplishing a purpose in writing, for developing a sequence of connected
ideas, and for empathizing with an audience.
The genres of text that
are typically addressed here are
a. short
reports (with structured formats and conventions);
b. responses
to the reading of an article or story;
c. summaries
of articles or stories;
d. brief
narratives or descriptions; and
e. interpretations
of graphs, tables, and charts.
DESIGNING
ASSESSMENT TASKS: RESPONSIVE AND EXTENSIVE WRITING
Paraphrasing
One
of the more difficult concepts for second language learners to grasp is
paraphrasing. The initial step in teaching paraphrasing is to ensure that
learners understand the importance of paraphrasing: to say something in one's
own words, to avoid plagiarizing, to offer some variety in expression. With
those possible motivations and purposes in mind, the test designer needs to
elicit a paraphrase of a sentence or paragraph, usually not more.
Guided
Question and Answer
Another
lower-order task in this type of writing, which has the pedagogical ben of guiding a learner without dictating the
form of the output, is a guided questiorr and-answer format in which the test
administrator poses a series of questions that essentially serve as an outline
of the emergent written text. In the writing of a narrative that the teacher
has already covered in a class discussion, the following kinds of questions
might be posed to stimulate a sequence of sentences.
Paragraph
Construction Tasks
The participation of reading performance is
inevitable in writing effective paragraphs. To a great extent, writing is the
art of emulating what one reads.You read an effective paragraph; you analyze
the ingredients of its success; you emulate it. Assessment of paragraph
development takes on a number of different forms:
1.
Topic sentence writing. There is no
cardinal rule that says every paragraph must have a topic sentence, but the
stating of a topic through the lead sentence (or a subsequent one) has remained
as a tried-and-true technique for teaching the concept of a paragraph.
Assessment thereof consists of
•
specifying the writing of a topic
sentence,
•
scoring points for its presence or
absence, and
•
scoring and/or commenting on its
effectiveness in stating the topic.
2.
Topic development within a paragraph.
Because paragraphs are intended to provide a reader with "clusters"
of meaningful, connected thoughts or ideas, another stage of assessment is
development of an idea within a paragraph. Four criteria are commonly applied
to assess the quality of a paragraph:
•
the clarity of expression of ideas
•
the logic of the sequence and
connections
•
the cohesiveness or unity of the
paragraph
•
the overall effectiveness or impact of
the paragraph as a whole
3.
Development of main and supporting ideas
across paragraphs. As writers string two or more paragraphs together in a
longer text (and as we move up the continuum from responsive to extensive
writing), the writer attempts to articulate a thesis or main idea with clearly
stated supporting ideas These elements can be considered in evaluating a
multi-paragraph essay:
•
addressing the topic, main idea, or
principal purpose
•
organizing and developing supporting
ideas
•
using appropriate details to undergird
supporting ideas
•
showing facility and fluency in the use
of language demonstrating syntactic
variety
Strategic
Options
Developing
main and supporting ideas is the goal for the writer attempting to create an
effective text, whether a short one- to two-paragraph one or an extensive one
of several pages. A number of strategies are commonly taught to second language
writers to accomplish their purposes. Aside from strategies of free writing,
outlining, drafting, and revising, writers need to be aware of the task that
has been demanded and to focus on the genre of writing and the expectations of
that genre.
TEST
OF WRITTEN ENGLISH (TWE)
The
TWE is in the category of a timed impromptu test in that test-takers are under
a 30-minute time limit and are not able to prepare ahead of time for the topic
that will appear. Topics are prepared by a panel Of experts following
specifications for topics that represent commonly used discourse and thought
patterns at the university level. Here are some sample topics published on the
IVE website.
SCORING
METHODS FOR RESPONSIVE AND EXTENSIVE WRITING
Holistic
Scoring
The
TWE scoring scale above is a prime example of holistic scoring. In Chapter 7, a
rubric for scoring oral production holistically was presented. Each point on a
holistic scale is given a systematic set of descriptors, and the
reader-evaluator matches an overall impression with the descriptors to arrive
at a score. Descriptors usually (but not always) follow a prescribed pattern.
For example, the first descriptor across all score categories may address the
quality of task achievement, the second may deal with organization, the third
with grammatical or rhetorical considerations, and so on. Scoring, however, is
truly holistic in that those subsets are not quantitatively added up to yield a
score.
Primary
Trait Scoring
A
second method of scoring, primary trait, focuses on "how well students cc
write within a narrowly defined range of discourse" (Weigle, 2002, p.
110).This type of scoring emphasizes the task at hand and assigns a score based
on the effective ness of the text's achieving that one goal. For example, if
the purpose or function for an essay is to persuade the reader to do something,
the score for the writing would rise or fall on the accomplishment of that
function. If a learner is asked to exploit the imaginative function of language
by expressing personal feelings, then the response would be evaluated on that
feature alone.
Analytic
Scoring
Primary
trait scoring focuses on the principal function of the text and therefore
offers some feedback potential, but no washback for any of the aspects of the
written production that enhance the ultimate accomplishment of the purpose.
Classroom evaluation of learning is best served through analytic scoring, in
which as many as six major elements of writing are scored, thus enabling
learners to home in on weaknesses and to capitalize on strengths. Analytic
scoring may be more appropriately called analytic assessment in order to
capture its closer association with classroom language instruction than with
formal testing. Brown and Bailey (1984) designed an analytical scoring scale
that specified five major categories and a description of five different levels
in each category, ranging from "unacceptable" to
"excellent".
BEYOND
SCORING: RESPONDING TO EXTENSIVE WRITING
Formal
testing carries with it the burden of designing a practical and reliable instrument
that assesses its intended criterion accurately. To accomplish that mission designers of writing tests are charged with
the task of providing as "objective
scoring procedure as possible, and one that in many cases can be easily
interpreted by agents beyond the learner. Holistic, primary trait, and analytic
scoring all satisfy those ends. Yet beyond mathematically calculated scores
lies a rich domain of assessment in which a developing writer is coached from
stage to stage in a process 'i building a storehouse of writing skills. Here in
the classroom, in the tutored relationship of teacher and student, and in the
community of peer learners, most of hard
work of assessing writing is carried out. Such assessment is informal,
formative and replete with washback.
Assessing
Initial Stages of the Process of Composing
Following
are some guidelines for assessing the initial stages (the first draft or two) of a written composition. These guidelines
are generic for self, peer, and teach responding. Each assessor will need to
modify the list according to the level of tl learner, the context, and the
purpose in responding. The teacher-assessor's role is as a guide, a
facilitator, and an ally; therefor assessment at this stage of writing needs to
be as positive as possible to the
writer. An early focus on overall structure and meaning will enable
writers clarify their purpose and plan
and will set a framework for the writers' later refinement of the lexical and
grammatical issues.
Assessing
Later Stages of the Process of Composing
Through
all these stages it is assumed that peers and teacher are both responding to
the writer through conferencing in person, electronic communication, or, at the
very least, an exchange of papers. The impromptu timed tests and the methods oi
scoring discussed earlier may appear to be only distantly related to such an
individualized process of creating a written text, but are they, in reality?
All those developmental stages may be the preparation that learners need both
to function in creative real-world writing tasks and to successfully demonstrate
their competence on timed impromptu
test. And those holistic scores are after all generalizations of various
components of effective writing. If the hard work of successfully gressing through a semester or two of a
challenging course in academic writing
mately means that writers are ready to function in their real-world
contexts, and get a 5 or 6 on the TWE,
then all the effort was worthwhile.
This
chapter completes the cycle of considering the assessment of all of the four
skills of listening, speaking, reading, and writing. As you contemplate using
some of the assessment techniques that have been suggested, I think you
can fully appreciate two significant
overarching guidelines for designing an
assessment procedure:
1.
It is virtually impossible to isolate any one of the four skills without the involvement
Of at least one other mode of performance. Don't underestimate power of the
integration of skills in assessments designed to target a single skill area
2.
The variety of assessment techniques and item types and tasks is virtually infinite in that there is always some
possibility for creating a unique variation. Explore those alternatives, but
with some caution lest your overzealous urge to be distract you from a central focus on achieving
the intended purpose and rendering an appropriate evaluation of performance.
Reference :
Brown,H.Douglas. 2004.
LANGUAGE ASSESSMENT “Principles and classroom practice”. New York: Pearson
Education.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar